An adventure time in time and space: Molten Steel
by PozzyP
Summary: Still reeling after the after the loss of the Ponds, the Doctor comes across a tear in the fabric of space time. Going through the wormhole causes him to crash land in the lab of a familiar pink princess but before he can adjust to the weird and wonderful land of Ooo he is thrust into a race against the clock as he discovers he wasn't the first one from his universe to come through
1. Geronimo!

Deep in the furthest reaches of space, beyond the boundaries of knowledge and reasoning themselves, where no human could ever have dream of finding themselves there stood a man. A man that, while peace and sanity were always the first port of call, could always be counted on to make the hard call. And right now he was faced with a choice that was so daring, so dangerous that he had spent the past few days motionless, unsure which way to go.

"What do you think, Sexy?" He pondered. Above all the noise that the TARDIS was constantly churning out a definite change in rhythm could be heard. When he had heard his answer (or as close to it as possible as in the early days of construction it was decided that a TARDIS should not really have a choice in where they go in case of rebellion against their creators), the man's indiscernible features flickered briefly in to a smile before reverting back their pensive state.

"I'm well aware of the risks, dear, but this may be my one and only opportunity to see life in a whole new dimension". He said placing emphasis on his last three words in particular.

"Hell I knew it was a risk to wear only holographic clothes to Jack's stag do." He exclaimed, rubbing the back of his head at the memories that were resurfacing. "How was I supposed to know that he'd gotten his hands on his own sonic screwdriver? Blimey what a night that was. No no no no I keep getting distracted from the issue at hand." He suddenly shouted, leaping round the dimly lit console to the zig-zag plotter.

"I've decided I'm going through. I've wasted enough time, even though you should waste time when you don't have any." He smiled when he remembered that he said that exact same thing to River and Amy. Amy. It had been so long since he had seen her and Rory but he knew he could never see them again. "_You're selfish you old fool! They would still be alive if you hadn't ruined everything. You kept bringing them along despite knowing you'd eventually be the cause of their…"_

"Gah I got distracted again." He yelled, pulling his dark mop of hair in frustration. "Right, Sexy, I want the technical run down of this wormhole". The wormhole in question had appeared a few days ago as if from nowhere when the Doctor was passing on his way to the Maldovarium and his curiosity had instantly been piqued.

"All right then let's find out what you are then, eh", he said with a grin as he pulled down the monitor to eye level. "A basic 7-dimensional wormhole imprinted onto the fabric of the universe through a quantum dispersion of Raxon waves. Well that's just boring". He sighed, flinging the monitor away from him and turning his back on the console.

"Wait hold on a minute, Sexy" he said, slowly turning back towards the main unit. "Bring up the scan again." After spending another few minutes carefully sifting through the readings on the screen, he yelled "Bingo! Oh that's rubbish I am never saying that again", he said, looking around the room for Amy, then remembering. _Thank God that Amy wasn't around to hear that_.

"No stop putting this off. This is a once in life time opportunity and with your lifespan that's saying something. What did I see? I saw the readings for localized oscillations on the reality plane. Or rather, I didn't." He scratched his face of indescribable age thoughtfully. "No oscillations, no movement, nothing, which could only mean that…". The realization dawned on him. "The wormhole is completely stable. It's not possible. All trans-dimensional occurrences of this magnitude have at least some tell-tale vibration but here it's still as a weeping angel." Which can only meeeaaann…"

He visibly jumped as the second wave of realization hit him. "It's artificial. This wormhole was created by someone…. for a purpose. But who and why. Why build something and not use it? Look at these readings. No one has even used it yet otherwise there would be entry scarring. And who could do this.? No one I know has this kind of tech and believe my I've checked all the usual places including down the back of the sofa." All the questions the Doctor was thinking were swimming about in his brain and making him dizzy.

"NO! ENOUGH" He yelled into the darkness. "Who cares about the dangers? If I stopped at the first sign of danger I'd miss all the best parts of an adventure. And that's what this is now. A journey into the unknown. Do you remember when we first set out together?" He said while stroking the console. A mechanical whirring seemed to answer. "Yes, to have the best of times, have an adventure among the stars and to witness the wonders of space. And we've got the bumper family package." He smiled, looking down at the wormhole on the TARDIS monitor.

"Right, every cell in my body says I shouldn't be doing this." The Doctor remarked as he appeared to dance around the main console, now full of life, pushing seemingly random buttons and throwing levers with a blasé attitude. "But hey, the rules were meant to be broken, eh, Sexy?" The whirring increased in pitch as the time rotor on the central column began to rise and fall, making the wheezing noise the Doctor had grown to love.

"Yes I suppose it is brilliant. I'll add "the rules are meant to be broken" to my list. Sort of negates the point of having a list but who's counting." He grinned.

"Geronimo!" He yelled, still grinning as the old man and the even older box flew straight into the gaping mouth of the wormhole. "GERONIMO!"

* * *

Another day had dawned on the land of which of Ooo and the sun was bathing the all the kingdoms in a glorious ocean of sunlight. One of these kingdoms was the candy Kingdom, known for its spiralling sugary colonnades and its hardworking but carefree attitude. And on this day (and it was a beautiful day at that) every man and his candy coated dog were relaxing and enjoying the sunshine. Everyone except for one.

"No I was so close this time! Why why why won't these chemicals combine properly? I've got all the right ingredients and followed the instructions down to a microscopic level and yet… NOTHING!"

The owner of the now frustrated voice was none other than the candy kingdoms very own princess Bubblegum, who had spent the past few days (she thought it was days) cooped up in her laboratory working on something vital for the residents of her beloved kingdom. Though it annoyed her to spend so much time in the darkness of the room and longed to feel the glow of the sun on her pale pink skin she knew her Subjects came first. In fact she was so wrapped in her work she didn't hear the door to her lab slowly open behind her and a figure creep silently across the floor to where she now stood.

"Hello my princess." The whisper sounding like flakes of ice drifting across the valley beyond the kingdom walls. "Surprised to see me."

"What the..?" The princess whirled around, nearly knocking over her precious experiment in the process. "Ice King? How did you get in here? Banana guards get this man away from me! Guards?!"

"Oh I'm sorry my love but I thought it was best if we weren't disturbed for the next few minutes." He smiled with his broken teeth at her.

"First of all I AM NOT YOUR LOVE, UNDERSTAND!? She yelled at him, causing him to cower slightly in childlike shame. "Secondly". Her shrill voice rising in pitch. "I am very busy right now on something that will benefit everyone in the candy kingdom so if you want to stand in the way of progress you can BUT NOT RIGHT NOW, I'M BUSY! Her voice was now practically a scream and her cheeks had turned red from her usual pink from the exertion. The Ice king's however remained pale blue and he merely replied:

"Yeah well I'm on a schedule as well so without further ado." He snapped his fingers and the princesses' wrists and ankles became instantly encased in a layer of ice.

"Hey let me go right now you fiend there are lives at stake here!" She half pleaded half screamed at the icy figure.

"Sorry princess but I have waited long enough for you so I want your answer right now." He said with his almost nasally voice.

"Ans…answer to what?" Bubblegum was now feeling slightly scared of the frozen wizard's intentions.

"Well it's quite simple really." A childish grin had appeared on his wizened face. "Either you agree to marry me right now or I'll…." But the ice kings' proposition was cut short as a grinding, whirring noise was quickly getting louder and drowning his words out. "What in Glob….?"

* * *

"Ok slight miscalculation on my part, sexy, but I seem to have misjudged the distance between us and the planet below. Not to worry though because it'll be fixed shortly. Yes I do mean when we crash into it, dear." Over the din of the rapidly phasing TARDIS engines the cloister bell was now ringing which brought the Doctor back to his senses.

"Ok I can still fix this. Just got to alter our trajectory enough so that…" But his important plan was halted when he was thrown across the console to the railings as the now alarmingly fast ship hit the atmosphere. Sparks erupted from the central column and noxious smoke was now billowing from the time circuits, its tendrils encircling the Timelord.

"Arrghh! Why is there always, ALWAYS smoke?! I really need to something about that, though the list is pretty short right now considering the impact on the ground below will almost certainly kill me. But I'm not dead yet. Fancy that. I'm doing the Silence's job for them."

The impish grin was wiped from his face when he realised that the TARDIS was now out of the upper atmosphere and in freefall towards, what appeared to be, a city made entirely out of pink and yellow bricks. But he didn't have time to marvel at the way the light danced across the roofs of the pinky purple houses and instead assumed the standard crash position (which he had in fact just made up because he thought it was about time he had at least some form of order in the rapidly plummeting time capsule.)

"Right this isn't going to be big on dignity now but I'd like to have at least some before I go." And with that the TARDIS promptly crashed through the roof of the tallest building in the city and sent up an enormous cloud of dust and debris in its wake. Several moments passed before the doctor realised a) the totally made up emergency position had worked and he wasn't dead B) the TARDIS was still in basic working order, much to his delight and c) he had probably inconvenienced a lot of people by crashing into their home.

"I suppose I better apologize to the residents here for all the fuss." Understatement of the year he pondered. Probably more than a fuss, more like a big fat mess but before all that let's do some checks. Legs yes." He smiled and kissed both of them. "Sonic, yes". He threw the instrument up in the air before catching it expertly in his pocket. "Bowtie, cool. I wonder if they have fezzes here?" He remarked as he placed his hand on top of his now unruly hair. "I'm missing something though. Hm. Oh that's right, smoke. SMOKE!" He yelled as the thick, black smoke that was oozing from every available orifice was now almost too dense to see through, even for the Doctors keen eyes.

"Right then, back in a minute, Sexy". He said as he flung open the doors and readied himself to face whatever challenges this strange new planet had to offer.

* * *

Both princess Bubblegum and the ice king stared in shock at, what appeared to be, a large rectangular crate that had smashed through the ceiling and was now settled the corner of the room. What was even more surprising to the pink princess was the condition the box was in. Although small quantities of smoke were seeping out of it seemed to be largely undamaged. Immediately the princess's sciency side took over as she examined the situation.

"_Any ordinary object at that kind of velocity would definitely have shattered on impact. And where did it fall from because we're currently at the highest point in the kingdom and for miles around. Is this another one of Finn and Jakes' pranks? Could it have fallen through the rif…"_

But before she could ponder any longer the door on the mysterious box opened and a young man walked out, or rather fell out and landed next to princess Bubblegum's long forgotten precious experiment which lay broken on the floor along with the rest of her work. A large cloud of gas also emerged from the box and smothered the figure in a thick black swirling mass. The cloud now started forward towards her and the ice king, who had now recovered, readied his ice powers to blow it away from himself. But before he could use his icy wind a voice yelled through the cloud:

"Extractor fans on!"

And as quickly as it had come the fog was sucked back into the box which was now revealed to be deep blue in colour. When the smoke cleared the figure who had been on the floor until now was suddenly upright and taking in his surroundings

"Sorry was I interrupting something?" The figure asked them.

"No-Yes" Was the answer that followed and was the result of a joint venture by both the princess (who had said yes in the hope of getting the strangers help in escaping) and the ice king (who had provided the negative in order to beat a hasty retreat).

"Well it can't be both now can it?" The figure said quizzically.

"Yes, this man is trying to kidn- mph" Bubblegum's words were cut off by the ice king hastily placing his hand over her mouth.

"Nope everything is completely fine here, in fact we were just leaving weren't we darling?"

"Mpphhh…mmppphhh"

"See all is fine here. N- Nothing suspicious at all." Stammered the ice king. After all, this was supposed to be a routine job that had quickly spiralled out of control. He picked the now kicking princess up and turned to leave.

"O.K this all seems in order to me but mind if I ask one quick question before you depart?"

"S, s, sure. G, go ahead." The ice king had begun to sweat nervously under the scrutiny of the stranger who had not once broken his gaze to him.

"What is your purpose with her?" He was now focused on, what looked like to him, a humanoid figure clad in an ankle length pink dress with a purple sash around the waist that complemented her pink flowing hair beautifully.

"Mmmphh!"

"I, I, er, if you must know we're going to get married. We're just so in love aren't we?" The pink clad figure was wildly shaking her head at the idea.

"Well you see that's very interesting on a number of levels." Although the figure had not raised his voice there was now an unmistakable edge to it that scared the ice king and caused Bubblegum to stop struggling entirely.

"You see although your voice said yes and I'm not exactly familiar with the social customs of this area I know true love when I see it. Your body language completely gives you away. Sorry but I've been playing this game for a long time and you just can't fool me with that kind of act. And it wasn't even a particularly good act either I might add."

The ice king's resolution hardened and he spat. "Who are you to judge me, stranger?" I am the king of ice and snow and you are no one to stand in the way of what I want." During this outburst the princess was surprised to see the figure not back down or even flinch at the ice kings rage. Who was this man?

"I'm not no one and I'm not a stranger. I'm the Doctor." His voice carried a resolute power that his audience on both sides couldn't help but admire.

"Well prepare yourself Doctor for the power of winter's harshness," the ice king laughed as he summoned his frozen energy into a ball ice and fired it at the still unflinching figure.

"One warning, that's all."

The man went from calm and collected to battle stance in matter of micro seconds and quickly flipped out ,what looked like to Bubblegum, a long silver stick which he then proceed to press. The stick let out a noise which shattered the ice ball before it was even half way across the room. The resulting shards showered the ice king and blinded him and in that second the stranger was across the room in a flash and positioned himself between the princess and the king.

"What magic is this?" The stunned ice king asked, pointing to the screwdriver.

"Science not magic. Magic is just science that you're just too lazy to understand." The Doctor retorted. This last sentence sent shivers up Bubblegum's spine as she had said the same thing to the Grand master wizard of wizards' town and yet this man who she had never even met before had said the exact same thing._ Clearly this is a man of knowledge and learning._

"Now, if you don't leave this instant I'll be forced to use my deadly glow stick of power again understand?" The ice king nodded slowly.

"Great!" Beamed the man, all his darkness from earlier was now replaced with a cheerful demeanour that couldn't help but make you feel happy as well. The frosty wizard turned to go before saying:

"This isn't over yet." Then he was gone in a flurry of snowflakes.

* * *

**First chapter is up! Please write a review so I can better my writing and improve your experience. Favourites are appreciated!**


	2. The Princess and the Doctor

**Oops I forgot the obligatory disclaimer in the first part so here it is: I don't own Doctor Who or Adventure time except the scenario of the current story. The one review that I did get was the only thing to inspire me to continue with this story so please review people, it means a lot to me. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Tch what a sourpuss." The Doctor commented. Without even turning around he aimed his sonic screwdriver backwards at where Bubblegum was still standing and pressed it. The ice that had encased her arms and legs disintegrated instantaneously, much to her amazement. Even more surprising to her was that he didn't acknowledge her at all and instead became much more interested in the various jars of chemicals that had survived the blast which he proceeded to zap in the same way with his stick.

"Um excuse me but what are you doing to my stuff there? I did spend a lot of time getting those together you see…" The princess asked the man who was now examining a puddle of goo on the floor next to what was left of the wall.

"Oh don't mind me." He said offhandedly and still not turning around to face her. "I'm just examining the molecular make up of your chemicals here, see I'm not from 'round these parts and some of these are just fascinating."

Bubblegum smiled when he said chemicals (the term she preferred) and not potions which Finn and Marceline always called them. She gasped when she realised what liquids had now caught his attention on the floor.

"Agh, you idiot!" She suddenly yelled, making the Doctor jump. "Months and months of work it took to prepare that and now it's gone forever. Everybody was counting on me and I failed because of you." She was now on the brink of tears.

"You say that like you've given up but there's always hope. Trust me…, I'm the Doctor." Although he still had his back to her, princess Bubblegum could sense the empathy in his tone.

"Right let's have a look shall we?" He said while whipping out the odd metallic device again. "Ooh that is brilliant. No honestly that is top notch right there and you deserve a medal for this Miss…. Uh". He stopped mid-sentence as he realised that despite everything that had just happened he didn't know the name of the person he had just saved.

"It's Bubblegum, princess Bubblegum" she said, blinking back her tears.

"That's a brilliant name. I've always wanted to meet someone called Bubblegum but back to your experiment." He re-zapped the slowly evaporating solution with the sonic in the same manner as the others and read off the analysis. "This solution is an ingenious concoction of chemicals that inhibits volatile reactions from extracellular secretions in the body. In other word this arrangement…"

"…Stops internal spontaneous combustion on a body wide scale." Bubblegum said to finish the Doctor's sentence.

"But why go on to develop something as outlandish as this. You said it took you months and that people were depending on you. That shows me your heart because look outside. It's a beautiful day and yet you're still inside working on this… You care about them a great deal, don't you, to sacrifice so much for these people. I wish I could be more like you." The princess was lost in thought. She had only just met this man and yet he seemed to know everything about her just from a chemical spillage on the floor. She was gradually brought back to reality back his continued ramblings.

"…unless there's a big market for this kind of thing which would suggest this is quite a common problem which, by its nature, raises another question. What species are you?" He stopped to take a breath after his analysis as he had become dizzy from lack of oxygen.

"You really aren't from around here are you? I'm a candy person and so are all my subjects."

"Candy, what like sweets and chocolate?" He laughed. "This day just gets better and better".

"Now if you don't mind me asking, who are you? I should at least know the name of the person who simultaneously saved me and trashed my lab." It was the princesses turn to go on the offensive and ask questions.

"I'm known only as the Doctor."

"That's a title not a name."

"Yeah well so's princess but I presume you have a first name as well."

"I do but from a monarchical point of view I'm just princess. Only close friends and family know my first name. But it's different with you, Doctor, isn't it." It was the Doctor's turn to jump. "_Am I that easy to read?"_

"Alright let's try a different angle." She spoke at length after observing the Doctor's silence. "What species are you?" Instead of answering straight away he simply turned around on the spot to face the pink princess for the first time since they had met. She visibly gasped after taking a step back. Due to the smoke and confusion from earlier she hadn't been able to make out his clothes or features but they were clear as day now. Their eyes locked.

She took in the brown tweed jacket with elbow patches that had turned black from smoke exposure, the red bow tie that he wore looked completely out of place next to his relatively normal white shirt and his black lace up shoes. But his face was what had caused her to step back. Although his features were young, early thirties she guessed, his eyes told a different story.

This was a man who had walked across the universe, stood at the heart of time itself and dared to stand up for what he believed in no matter the personal cost. These were eyes that had seen life and death and loss and rage all at the same time and it overwhelmed her to know she was in presence of a man who had carried the burden of the universe on his back with no wish to be acknowledged for doing so. After several long moments of silence from both sides it was Bubblegum who broke the quiet.

"You're not human are you?" She stammered

"No I'm not", was the only reply she received. Only a simple statement of the truth.

"Finn will be very disappointed. I really thought for a minute he had found someone else but I was silly to believe that even for a second."

"Finn, who's that your boyfriend?" He joked. What the Doctor got next was the biggest slap of his life (and that's saying something when you know River Song).

"I get that you're a complete alien to the culture on this planet but did you really think asking that personal a question was a good idea?!" She shouted, her cheeks turning bright red again.

"Ow, ow o.k. I'm sorry for being nosy but I…" His voice trailed off. "Oh I get it now, gah I'm an idiot I should have seen it sooner. Much, much sooner. Silly Doctor." He stood berating himself.

"Should have seen what?" Princess Bubblegum replied slowly and now feeling scared about what piece of intuition he was going to use unravel her feelings towards Finn.

"I should have got it immediately, it's obvious that you harbour feelings for this person am I right?" This earned him another slap but he could feel a difference in tone this time. Whereas the first time it had been full of anger at his tactless joke this one definitely felt more along the lines of panicked denial than outright rage.

"You might as well have just said yes because you just gave me your answer through a psycho-mechanical outburst manifesting itself as your slap. Don't worry your secret is safe with me." He tapped his nose knowingly. Princess Bubblegum opened her mouth to object but slowly closed it again.

"Yes it's true." She looked down at the floor and her voice was full of regret. "But it can't ever work because I shot him down in flames when he confessed his attraction and I'm pretty much responsible for his break up with flame princess.

"Does anybody use actual names here or is it just Finn, no sorry off topic who is this flame princess?"

"When I rejected Finn he was distraught for weeks but he finally found love in a fire elemental called Flame princess. I told myself I was doing the right thing by keeping them apart and that it was for the good of the planet that they shouldn't be together. Sure her matrix was unstable and would have destroyed the planet if they had kissed but that's only half the story."

The Doctor's ancient eyebrows raised at the last confession.

"Although it was Finn's fault that they eventually broke up I feel responsible, like the trigger for the whole event."

_"So much for exploring new dimensions, looks I'm playing councillor today,"_ was the Doctor's internal thought process. "Tell me exactly how did this break-up come to fruition?" He ventured.

"The details are much too painful to relive but the bottom line is Finn forged hurtful letters between the ice king (who you just met) and Flame princess in order to get them to fight each other. Don't ask what he hoped to achieve by doing this but I know it's all my fault that he did. I know he said it was a dream that made him do it but I believe was just mad at me for ruining everything." She looked as if she was going to burst into tears again, either from the events of the day with the ice king or just sheer drain, so the Doctor quickly intervened.

"I see, and how long ago was this then?"

"Nearly two years ago now", she sobbed.

"This is very odd," the Doctor thought to himself. _"When faced with eternal marriage to a megalomaniac ice wizard she merely gets annoyed at him but when faced with this Finn person she breaks down completely at the thought. I would very much like to meet Finn and see for myself what all the fuss is about."_ He then spoke aloud to the still sobbing princess,

"Well I know this is going to sound a little heartless but it's been nearly two years. What's stopping you from "going and getting him" I think is the phrase. How old is he, no wait from your body language when you spoke about him I'd say maybe only slightly less than you and you're what only 19, 20 years old, so I'd say about 17. Believe me when I say I've seen bigger age gaps for couples. Much, much bigger." He shuddered when he remembered that Martha had tried to come onto him on more than one occasion. At the Doctor's last statement she proceeded to cry even harder.

_"O.k bad call, um, er, well… ugh give me Dalek over crying people any day."_ He thought as he awkwardly tried to comfort the sobbing princess. _"Come on what did you miss, think Doctor. Where's the tell-tale give away we missed. Oh. Ooohhhhhh. I get it now. I really, really get it."_

"Princess. Princess look at me", he said gently taking her hand. "I understand and I'm sorry. I should have realized sooner but it's been one hell of a day." With these words spoken Bubblegum looked up, tears still streaming, at the man standing above her who she had only just met but had somehow formed the strongest emotional connection too than with anyone she had ever encountered before.

"The way you hold yourself. The brilliant science experiments you've been doing. Even the way you looked at the ice king. You're not 18, 19 or even 20. I'd say closer to 800 but that's fine. Really it is. I know you're afraid to lose those around you and scared to form attachments to others because you know you'll outlast them due to your age but I understand."

His tone was now one of confession. "I've had the same problem. After all, it takes one to know one." During the time the Doctor had been telling his story Bubblegum had stopped crying completely, mesmerised by his intricate perception and understanding of her situation despite hardly knowing her. But there was one thing that was still bugging her.

"How. How can you know…. how can you understand what I have to live with day after day, knowing that one day I'll be the only one left and everybody I've cared about is gone?" Her tone was not of accusation but more of a desire for understanding.

"Well it's very simple really. You're a woman of science so try to guess my age. Come on, it'll be fun". He had once again got a grin on his face in the hope of making Bubblegum forget her troubles. She couldn't resist and soon she was also smiling which in turn made the Doctor's one bigger as he knew his plan had worked.

"Hm. Judging by your attire." She stopped. "Dear Glob what is that thing you're wearing. It's hideous." She laughed, all her worries forgotten.

"It's not hideous, it's cool. I wear a bowtie and bowties are cool." He said straightening it. This caused her to laugh even harder and nearly start crying again, but this time from joy, not from sadness.

"All right then. The clothes, the manners. I'd say you're around… early thirties, maybe late twenties. This time it was the Doctor's turn to start laughing.

"You're out. Way waaaaaayyy out. Several centuries in fact." Princess Bubblegum was shocked right out of her laugh and took a step back.

"WHAT? You have to be kidding me right? Right?"

"I'm actually closer to 1108 but early thirties was a good a guess as any."

"Bu, but your clothes. Your hair. The way you hold your body. You don't look a day over 30." She said incredulously.

"Ha ha ha, you should see me in the mornings but no, that is not my point." His face now full of meaning. "You didn't think I was a day over 30 because of the way I act and that is my point. Just because you grow old doesn't mean you have to grow up. I don't mourn the future losses of people I meet because I live in the moment and instead cherish every second I spend with them rather than think of the future. You should too. Trust me, I'm the Doctor."

Princess Bubblegum could only stare at the mystery man in amazement as it dawned on her that he was right. She should celebrate the lives of her friends without needing to feel regret for them (she didn't know the Doctor was being slightly hypocritical by saying "live in the moment" as he possessed the necessary technology for time travel but he thought it was better to let her be happy than to worry her with ideas like that for now).

"You've really cheered me up. Thank you, Doctor. It seems I owe you thanks for your service not just to me but to the candy kingdom as well." Bubblegum said, now feeling much better than she had done in months.

"Ah it was nothing." The Doctor replied sheepishly. "Though what do you mean a service. I only helped you to realize what I think you already knew. You just needed someone to tell you that."

"Oh you done much more than help me, Doctor, you've helped my whole kingdom." She turned away to face the wall. "I've been such a bad leader to these people. For days now I've hidden myself from public view in my lab and haven't even left the palace in about a week. I've been doing all my talking through Peppermint butler and my other servants just so I didn't have to leave for anything and now I'm starting to realize what I terrible monarch I've been. For all they know I could be dead. It's not just that but I'm a bad person for doing so." She crouched down on the floor, her bright pink hair nearly touching the ground. The Doctor crossed over to the crouching figure and huddled down beside her.

"I know you think you're a bad person but I can see right through to all your inner goodness and I can tell you right now that I don't believe for one second that you are a bad person. I've seen bad people, terrible creatures and you are not like them. You just lost your way that's all. You're just a good person who has done some things they're not proud of." He looked down at the ground as he knew he was talking as much about himself as he was her. "I mean look at the anti-combustion serum you were working on. You only stayed inside for the good of your people and not out of shame."

"You really are a doctor and not just someone who calls themselves that aren't you, Doctor?" Bubblegum said, standing up once more. "I don't know where you got your degree from but you can work wonders on your patients, me included. Thank you." The smile that came to her pink lips was one of real gratitude.

"As I said earlier no thanks is necessary though I appreciate it all the same," was his modest reply.

"Oh well would you look at the time." Princess Bubblegum gasped suddenly as she caught sight of her clock which had miraculously managed to remain attached to the wall after the crash. It's nearly 5 o'clock. How time flies," she chuckled.

"_Rubbish phrase, never understood it but I suppose we have spent quite a long time here,"_ _he thought to himself. It also looks like they use standard time measurements here as well. Interesting."_ He then felt a small breeze ruffling his still untidy mop of hair and turned to see where it was coming from. It was coming from the massive hole that was now a permanent feature of the back wall of the lab but that wasn't the important part. He walked forward toward, what he thought was the most beautiful scene he had ever seen in all his hundreds of years of travel. The sun was just beginning to set on the candy kingdom and was a truly magnificent sight to behold.

The last rays of sunshine were dancing across the brightly coloured rooftops and creating magnificent displays of shadow work as they slowly retreated back into the sky. Somewhere below a bird called out to its partner and an answer could be heard that pierced the now golden glow of the area. "_You really could spend an eternity here couldn't you",_ the Doctor thought while taking in the perfection around him. He was brought back to reality with the sound of princess Bubblegum's voice saying

"I suppose you'll be wanting to see Finn but I can see you've discovered what reminds me of what I was missing when I wasn't outside." She had been calmly observing the Doctor's movements and expressions from across the room and decided that he was being sincere about everything that he had said so far. She had learned a while ago that you can learn a lot from people even when they aren't speaking.

"Oh yes Finn. I was wondering when you were going to bring him up but I was under the impression that you couldn't face him after…after all the things you said." He was careful about how he worded his answer.

"I think it's time I faced up to the things I've done. I've spent too long trying to run away from my troubles and now I've decided that enough is enough. It's time to face the music. Besides, it'll be easier if there's someone at my side to help me." Bubblegum smiled impishly at the Doctor and he couldn't help but join in. "Right I'm just going to clean myself up so I won't be long. Stay here all right?"

"You can count on me, princess", he replied while mock saluting her as she left the lab before turning back to the hole in the wall to watch the twilight stars come into view. He decided he would chart them later on his map collection but for now was simply content to observe and wonder at what secrets they held.

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**Please review to let me know your thoughts on this chapter and the story as a whole. Tell the next one, PozzyP out ;).**


	3. The power of memories

**PozzyP here! I've setteled into a regular update pattern of tuesdays and fridays for those interested but I'm not sure how time zones affect all that. Anyway please enjoy and review. Thanks to 'I am Red Bull' for the support with this, giving me the drive to continue with this and check out his story in this genre if you haven't already done so.**

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It was quite a while before Princess Bubblegum returned to the lab after getting changed into another one of her countless pink dresses. During this time the Doctor had had the opportunity to wander around what was left of the place and make his way through the numerous empty pizza boxes and coffee cups in the hope of learning more about his recent destination.

What had caught his attention, however, hadn't been the piles of notes on entanglement theory or advanced cloning (for he mastered all of that and more a long time ago), it was one of Bubblegum's undamaged laptops that he had quite easily hacked into.

From across the room the princess managed to open the door and sneak back in unobserved in the hope of analysing the Doctor's behaviour and decide (in the most scientific way possible) what kind of a person he was. From within her pocket she took out, what looked like, a thin metallic pen with a red light at the end.

It was the same device she had used on Braco to determine his cognitive state when speaking to her and she thought she could do the same thing with the man who was still rifling through her digitized experiment notes. No sooner had she pressed the button the device exploded within her pink palmed hand and in that brief instant she saw the horror before the device gave out. The rage of a Timelord. The efforts he had gone to, to do the right thing.

"I wouldn't use that kind of thing around me if I were you", the Doctor said casually while still typing on the laptop. "Over 1000 years of memories. I've had quite a lot to go on so I set up a complete psychic block the second I saw you pull out that device."

"But how? How did you know I had it? You were facing away from me when I entered." She said, sounding frustrated and annoyed.

"Was I? I saw your reflection in the screen I'm reading. And why did you use such a device in the first place? I thought we were hitting it off pretty well." Bubblegum was now feeling very embarrassed to not only be scanning the only person who had ever understood her but also had been caught doing it.

"I'm sorry, Doctor", she sighed guiltily. "It's just that I wanted to be absolutely sure that I could trust you. I haven't exactly had a track record on that front so I decided to use my science to try to work you out. Please forgive me." Bubblegum was taken completely by surprise at his reply.

"I suppose you're right to have tried to understand me better. I wouldn't need people to trust me so much if always told them the truth. Of course it's always for their own safety but I still feel bad about it and before you ask, I don't forgive you." The princess was saddened by this. The one time she thought she had found a friend and she had to ruin it. The Doctor, noticing her low morale, continued.

"I don't forgive you. I commend you." Her eyes lit back up at his statement. "I commend you for being the first person in a long time to try to understand me in the most scientific way possible. You deserve a pat on the back. After all, if science can't solve a problem what can, eh?" Bubblegum smiled another smile of real gratitude to him before coming across a snag.

"How come you were able to destroy my device with just your thought's alone. That should be completely impossible."

"It's just one of the perks of being a Timelord I suppose." Noticing her perplexed expression he added quickly, "Oh that's what my race is called by the way. Yes, we have slight psionic abilities that enable us to mentally block and transfer memories to external sources. Quite useful when you think about it."

"So that's why you and Marceline have differing reactions to the emoti-reader…you see she's also over 1000 years old but she just gets annoyed when I use it on her and doesn't exhibit the same feelings despite having the same amount of memories as you". She said matter-of-factly but the colour drained from her face as she realized what she had just let slip. The doctor turned to face her slowly.

"When I was listening to you earlier you said that there was no one else you could connect to because of your age and yet it seems to me this Marceline character is the perfect person. Why didn't you mention her?" The Doctor looked expectantly over to the princess who was now shaking.

"Well, look, you see, er, ummm." Her normally pretty face was contorted in thought in an effort to find a decent answer. The fact was she didn't know why she didn't mention Marceline earlier. "…It's complicated. You wouldn't understand", she said at length though was frightened he would figure it out with his amazing brain processing speed.

"I highly doubt that", he said, all interest in the computer lost. "Just from your body language alone I can guess that you two were… involved together. Not exactly friends but it wasn't a fully-fledged relationship." She flinched when he said relationship. "Hmmm. OF COURSE. Yes, brilliant oh sorry did I startle you? Brain just went bang from the all the connections I just made." He said while waving his arms in the air.

"You did something. Something she thought was unforgivable at the time but over the years has learned to accept. But that's not it though is it?" The princess shook her head, again overwhelmed by his accuracy and understanding without even her even saying anything to help him.

"Although you're on good terms now there's still tension because neither of you have formally apologized yet. Am I right?" She nodded again and looked down at the floor. "Look I'm sorry for doing these things but I just want you to hear it from somebody else so you can understand it better yourself. I'm just trying to help you because that's what I do. The man who makes people better."

"No it's ok, Doctor, I understand. You don't have to feel as if you should apologize for helping. Because of you I now know what I did was wrong and only you could have helped me see that."

"See that kind of mentality will get you nowhere, trust me. I only helped you to see but it was you who was doing all the hard work. Learn to take credit for your own actions."

"I could say the same to you, Doctor." Bubblegum said smiling. He was taken slightly aback at this remark but couldn't help but admire the princess's spirit. After several awkward moments of quiet it was him who broke the silence.

"I forgot to ask earlier, why is the anti-spontaneous combustion serum so important you."

"Not just to me but to my whole kingdom", was the solemn reply she gave. "You see due to our physiology, when a candy a person gets scared our bodies release several chemicals at once to try to calm them down but when mixed in the correct proportions it creates a volatile mixture that combusts immediately. We've had countless deaths over the past few years so I decided to create a cure for it. And I was so close as well, until you crashed in here and broke it," she said with an accusatory tone to her high pitched voice."

"Heh heh, oops. Um well allow me to fix it for you as penance for my crimes", he said while bowing.

"You….want to recreate the serum?" She said incredulously.

"Yes!"

"Without having or knowing where any of the ingredients and chemicals can be found."

"Yes!"

"Without knowing how to use any of the equipment in this room, and with half of it destroyed due to your machine landing here?"

"Yes!"

"And without having the slightest idea about…"

"Are you just going to stand there and criticize me for things I haven't done yet."

"Destroying my lab and equipment don't count?" She said, annoyed.

"Aside from those things, which I will undoubtedly replace before I leave."

"You're leaving. Oh." Princess Bubblegum sounded deflated.

"Everybody leaves in the end. Even me, especially me, but live in the moment. Remember what I told you. Right this experiment of yours let's see here." He exclaimed, going from serious to playful in a matter of seconds.

_"Does he have some form of bi-polar I wonder? Quick mood swings is definitely a check."_ Before she could ponder further she found herself under the scrutiny of the mysterious metallic glow stick again which he taken out."

"Hm." He said aloud, inspecting the device after the green light had faded. He flicked his wrist and it extended out which startled the princess. "Basic humanoid shape with 75% solid organic material and 25% a slightly viscous combination of various organic liquids. But what are you made of though at a cellular level?" It wasn't the fact that he could deduce her building blocks from a small stick of metal that confused Bubblegum it was where it had come from.

_"There's no way that whole stick could have fitted in to his pocket. Does it fold up? Maybe his pockets are bigger on the inside."_ She thought.

"Ah yes here we go", he was now in full swing and had become excited by what he saw on the sonic screwdriver. "Your solid material is a simply brilliant fusion of crystalline sugar molecules and proteins with an elastic super polymer which allows you to support yourself without the need for a proper skeletal system but allows you free movement in all directions. Fascinating. The liquid part appears to be just a dilute solution of dissolved sugars in water. That's nice knowing there's water here 'cause I was feeling slightly thirsty. Right I've got everything I need to recreate your serum, are you sure you want me to?"

"Yes, yes please Doctor. It would mean the world to me, but how on earth did you extract all that information from me?" She asked him and in return he showed her the device.

"It's called the sonic screwdriver. I'd be lost without it", he smiled whilst tapping it against the table. "Performs scans, hacks electronic systems and, most importantly, opens doors. I works by emitting sound waves that…". His explanation was cut off by Bubblegum.

"…that set up a resonance pattern in the object which vibrates at just the right frequency to perform a variety of different tasks," she finished for him. It was his turn to be shocked.

"How did you…? I thought you said you didn't understa…", but he was cut off once again.

"Snap!" She said and the Doctor's eyes widened as princess Bubblegum pulled out a metallic looking candy cane with purple light at the end.

"But that's a sonic screwdriver! A real actual working sonic screwdriver!" He nearly fell over from shock.

"I prefer the term "sonorous" to sonic but I guess you're right. Meet the sonic candycane. It's only a prototype but it still functions as well as I had hoped. The reason I was so surprised at your version is that mine can only perform basic functions such as opening doors at the minute and I would never have guessed it had the potential to break down the atomic structure of living organisms. I only created it to give to Finn so he could open doors more easily on his adventures. I'm not too fond of the _"smash everything approach"_ he likes to use but now that I know the potential it has I'll create another for myself." When the Doctor finally recovered from the shock of seeing another working screwdriver he gathered all his remaining strength to say,

"You've impressed me. Downright honest to god impressed me and not many people can do that." She blushed at his words. "Now it's my turn. Not only am I going to recreate your experiment but I'm also going to do it in under 5 minutes."

"Now really, Doctor. I know you're a genius and all that but even if you had all the relevant components, which you don't I might add, there's simply not enough time for you to perfect it. Sorry but consider me unimpressed." She said with a smile.

"You want to bet on that?" He returned with a daring grin. "Not enough time? I'm good with time yes I am good with time." He punctuated each of his last words with a sharp rap on the table with his screwdriver (which Bubblegum thought might damage it).

"You'll never do it." She reiterated, though now feeling slightly less confident. He just kept on grinning which made her feel even less confident.

"Start the clock Miss Bubblegum." And with that he dashed off towards the big blue box that had been standing forgotten in the corner, opened it (Bubblegum was surprised to see that no smoke came out when he did, after all it was only so big), and went inside. Bubblegum's timer had only passed the minute mark when he reappeared with a whole assortment of different things and one of them appeared to be some sort of circular biscuit with a jam heart in the middle.

He was already midway through mixing things in a bowl when he walked out and it was a miracle he didn't drop any of the countless things he was holding while he kept on stirring. She observed him haphazardly throwing the chemicals he had into the big mixing bowl while singing about someone called "Billie Jean" and she wondered who she was. After another three minutes she began to get hopeful he would lose his bet and go over time but no sooner had she thought that she realized he was down to his last ingredient. The circular jam biscuit which he then proceeded to crumble with his fingers and drop in to the bowl. After doing this a wide grin appeared across his face and he yelled.

"STOP THE TIMER! How did I do?" He said still grinning.

"I-I don't believe it." Bubblegum stuttered. "4 minutes and 51 seconds. This doesn't prove anything though." She quickly added, looking over at the now brightly glowing orange liquid which was still in the bowl. "Hand it here please." He complied and handed over the bowl. "How does it work sorry?" She said after realizing she had no idea what to do with the strange mixture.

"Just drink about oh so much." He gestured with his hands, with his ridiculous grin still plastered onto his features. "Wait hold on how ARE you going to test this? I mean you said yourself you're your species only combusts in times of extreme fear. How do you aim to achieve this?" He pondered.

"Oh that's easy, Doctor", she relied before drinking about a quarter of the contents of the bowl. "You're going to scare me."

"Eh, what?" was the only answer he got.

"Before my emoti-reader was destroyed by cognitive feedback, for the briefest of seconds I saw inside your mind. And it scared me. You said you were able to transfer memories so give it a shot. Scare me."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa hang on there, princess, there's a reason your device blew up. My past isn't to be taken lightly and it haunts me every day of my life. All the things I've done in the name of the Doctor. Are you sure you want to see it?"

"For my people, I will do anything." He admired her spirit but was still uneasy.

"This process isn't exactly the safest one in the entire universe I should warn you." He said in attempt to dissuade her.

"You told me to trust you and I do. I have complete faith in your abilities, Doctor." The old man sighed and held out his hands,

"Take my hands." Bubblegum did as requested and was surprised by the warmth that flowed through them. "Clear your mind. Let all your troubles melt away into nothing. Close your eyes and just be content to be. Just be." He placed his hands on her temples and instructed her to do the same to him. She did and when she had he said one last thing.

"I'm going to open the doorway now but please understand that once it is open it is open from both ends. I'll be able see just as much into your mind as you will into mine. Are you ok with that?" She nodded calmly, eyes still closed. "All right princess. Prepare yourself and please forgive me for what I am about to do." And without another word he lifted his mental barrier and the flood gates opened. Bubblegum's rosy face became contorted in pain as she saw the visions that had caused pain to the loneliest man in the universe.

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_"This is your last chance, General. Leave this planet or I'll use the device."_ Bubblegum found her consciousness looking down on a scene on what appeared to be some sort of space ship. There were several thousand figures in battle armour facing a man in a brown suit and tie with spiky brown hair. Although she had never met him before she instinctively knew him as the Doctor.

_"Then do it you coward",_ shouted their leader, a creature whose smooth brown features resembled that of a potato. _"We are not afraid of death. We are Sontarans. Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha!" _They began to chant. The man in the suit looked out across the ranks and looked up towards the ceiling before attempting to press the button but before he could there was a flash of light and where he had been standing there was a boy of no more than 18.

_"Sontar-ha!"_ He cried before pressing down on the button. The pain the Doctor faced in coming to terms with an innocent boy's sacrifice scarred him for life…and Bubblegum could feel it.

The scene shifted again to what looked like an underground cave with a plethora of plant life. The man in the suit was there again and he was talking to a group of, what looked like, human soldiers and bi-pedal fish. He turned towards a girl of around 19 and started talking to her and Bubblegum could see that he was, for once, happy.

But, alas, it was not to be as one of the human males who was kneeling on the floor drew his weapon and fired at the brown suited man. In the instant before, however, the woman had pushed him out of the way and taken the shot for him. She lay dying in his arms and Bubblegum felt everything he was feeling. Rage, anger and sadness were just some of the things she could feel coursing through her veins like fire. When the girl had died he stood up and walked over to the man who had committed the crime. He raised his gun and instead of firing said:

_"I never would. Never."_ The passion behind those words nearly overwhelmed Bubblegum's spirit before the scene changed for the last time. She wasn't even sure where she was now as the smoke was so thick she was near blind. What she could make out thought was burning. So much burning and destruction. The fire and smoke filled her vision and threatened to drown her in a sea of near infinite chaos. The smoke cleared enough for her to see countless stone structures that littered the area with rubble.

The buildings that were standing had broken glass and the roads were littered with the bodies of the innocent. Bubblegum's spirit could only stare at the destruction around her in horror. Who had done this? Why had they done this? The smoke cleared even more and what remained of a great glass dome could been seen in the distance with several saucer shaped discs floating around it, firing projectiles of energy at it.

Though the air was still thick with smoke, Bubblegum thought she could make out a figure walking towards her. Every muscle in her body was telling her to run but she was paralysed with fear. Her soft pink hairs stood on end as he came closer and closer and closer. He wore a simple brown leather coat and trousers that had been soiled with the burden of war. As he came ever closer through the swirling fog she could just make out his weather beaten face and cold dead eyes that had seen too much. When he stepped into view he said only one thing which chilled princess Bubblegum right to the core.

_"No more."_

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**This chapter will be the last to focus solely on PB and the Doctor and in the next chapter Finn and Jake make their first appearance. Check out my deviantart page for a larger version of the cover artwork for this story (Hint: it may shed light on the upcoming plot the story will follow.) **

** art/An-adventure-time-in-time-and-space-Molten-steel-462175675**

**Till the next one, PozzyP out!**


	4. Treehouse intruders

**Hello again, PozzyP here and is back with chapter 4 of the story. Thanks to all those people for their support with this story, I couldn't have done it without you. Write a review if you want...or don't I'm not entitled to tell you what you can and can't do. Either way I hope you enjoy the next part!**

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"…incess…blegum. Princess Bubblegum". Bubblegum's eyes snapped open and the man in the tweed suit she knew as the Doctor shimmered in to view.

"Wha-what happened? Why am I on the floor?" She tried to stand up but immediately felt dizzy and was helped back down by a warm arm.

"Easy there, princess. Don't be too hard on yourself! This was your first time doing a complete cerebral swap, though don't say I didn't warn you." He laughed softly at his own statement. "Do you notice anything different around here?"

"Uggghhhh…..not really. I'm still dizzy so just give me a moment." She brought her arms up to her face and…arms. She still had arms. And legs as well. "I-I should be dead. I experienced enough fear to combust an entire platoon of banana guards. But that means it worked! Your ridiculous combination of chemicals worked! Thank you so much, Doctor."

"Never underestimate the power of a jammy dodger and besides, if it's ridiculous and it works then it's not ridiculous is it?" He smiled at the pink princess.

"No I suppose not." She replied and returned the smile from her sitting position on the floor. She stiffened when she recalled why she was one the floor in the first place. "How-how can you live with yourself?"

"Sorry what?" His smile faltered.

"Those things I saw. Those terrible, terrible things. You have to live with them every waking hour. I-I have so many questions."

"Another time but now I think we should go and see Finn." He said, his smile now slightly forced.

"Oh gosh, Finn. I completely forgot about him. Wouldn't be the first time. I'll go and rally my carriage."

"That won't be necessary princess as I've got just the right thing for that." He looked over at the blue crate.

"You're not seriously suggesting that that thing is still flight ready. You haven't performed any of the relevant checks to make sure it's safe to use yet and besides it's so tiny so how will we both fit in, hmm?" Bubblegum crossed her arms across her chest in defiance.

"So many questions yet so little time." The Doctor tapped his watch habitually. "Under the circumstances I think it's best if I just show you. My ships a tough old girl and she's seen worse days believe me, so she's perfectly safe to use." Before Bubblegum could protest at his lack of adherence to standard safety procedures he grabbed her hand and led her over towards the tall blue box. She could just make out the words "Police public call" at the top before he said "meet our ticket out of here. Welcome to the TARDIS."

He snapped his fingers on his free hand and the doors opened inward to what Bubblegum could only describe as the most wondrous sight she would ever see. In the centre of the room there was a hexagonal shaped control panel made up of countless switches and buttons that her scientific side would have loved to play with. The glass floor surrounding it was raised above floor level with a small flight of stairs connecting the two and there were doors at the far end that led to Glob knows where.

"Come on say it. They all do." The doctor said playfully, noticing her wonderment at the craft.

"The inner dimension is at variance with the outer one." His reaction made Bubblegum giggle.

"Well I've not heard that one before. First time for everything I suppose." He smoothed his mop of brown hair back before leaping up the stairs to the main unit. "Next stop Finn's house." He ran around the console flicking things on and off and pressing all sorts of buttons and Bubblegum wondered when he would realize his mistake. It was around 30 seconds later she got her answer. "Sorry where exactly is Finn's house?" He asked, embarrassed.

"Finally he asks," Bubblegum chuckled. "You know you might be one of the smartest most brilliant people I have ever met and yet you can miss the obvious so easily.

"Oi, I have lots of things to remember. Things and stuff now tell me the exact co-ordinates to Finn's house or I'll just have to guess and it almost certainly won't work." He noticed her blank expression. "Oh. You don't know the space-time co-ordinates do you? No, why would you I mean all you have to do is walk there from your palace without having to know exactly where it is on the reality plane. Not to worry just think about where it is and we'll get there." He had to stop for air after his mini-outburst and during this time Bubblegum managed to find a break in his conversation to express her doubts.

"I'm sorry what? You're saying that just by thinking we can land right outside on his doorstep just like that. How?" After he regained his composure he replied,

"TARDIS telepathic circuits. If I connect you up to them then it will be just as good if not better than having the real thing. Besides without them I'd have to memorize the space-time co-ordinates for everywhere in the entire universe and that would be difficult, even for me. Sorry I had yesterday off. Does this make sense?"

"No," was Bubblegum's reply while she shook her head.

"Good because it so totally shouldn't, now just think about his house. Clear your head and picture it, like you can almost see it." The time rotor at the centre of the console began to slowly rise and fall. "Good that's it" He said encouragingly to the pink princess whose brow was furrowed in concentration. "Think of it. Feel it." The rotor began to pick up speed and a churning, wheezing noise filled the room. As the bright blue time capsule dematerialized both Bubblegum and the Doctor were unaware that they had been observed from a vantage point on of the few remaining shelves in the lab. It was a small, shiny object that resembled that of a fly; it was relaying all the information it had recorded back to an unknown location.

_"Alert, alert the Doctor has been sighted!" The voice on the receiving end of the footage was deep, almost growl like but had a definite synthetic quality to it. "We must advance the plan before the Timelord discovers our intentions. Activate all available units. He must be stopped. He must be deleted."_

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"Jake did you leave the front door open again? Jake?"

"Dude, go back to sleep it's like 2 in the morning. I'll deal with it later." The yellow dog rolled back over to face the wall.

"Come on man that noise is way too loud." Finn said sleepily while pulling the covers over his head. "I can't sleep with that noise outside so just stretch your arm downstairs and close the door."

"Ugh fine but I'm pretty sure it was your turn to be on door duty." Jake extended his arm across the wooden floor of the treehouse and down the stairs. He suddenly sat bolt upright. "Dude there's something in the living room. It's blocking my path to the door."

"Huh?" Finn was now wide awake. "What is it Jake."

"It feels like wood, though I don't know. We should probably check it out."

"Can't it wait 'till tomorrow, bro? I'm really kinda sleepy". Finn turned over to face away from him.

"Oh no dude we're not doing this again." Jake stretched over to Finn's bed and sat on him, making him grunt. "Remember last time when you said it was all fine and we should just go back to bed and then we were attacked by those flesh eating insects. Not this time, dude." Jake pulled back Finn's covers and proceeded to lightly tickle his face.

"Ok, ok, jeez. We'll go check it out." He put on his trademark blue top and pants and then his bear hat. "Do you know what time it is Jake?" He said with a grin.

"Get rid of the mysterious wooden object so we can go back to sleep, time?"

"Near enough. Let's roll". Finn back-flipped off his bed and stealthily crept down to the lower level while Jake followed his arm to where it lay, still downstairs. "Jake check it out. Did you order another one of those porta-potties?" Jake shook his head, then morphed it into two more heads which also shook. The door opened which led to Finn drawing his sword and Jake transforming his arm into a club, ready to defend their beloved tree house. The door to the mystery appliance opened and a figure wearing the most ridiculous outfit Finn had ever seen stepped out.

"Right then which one of you is Finn the human?"

"Seriously, Doctor?" Came another voice from within the box (which Finn thought was strange as it sounded like it came from a way away but the box itself was pretty small).

"Never knowingly be serious. Rule 511 but I can see your point. Finn I take it?" The strange man pointed to the humanoid figure with an odd metallic pen. Finn was dumbstruck. He took in the man's clothes and features and settled on his face.

"Errrr, yes. You're not…."

"Human? Sorry, but no. My name's the Doctor and I'm here to help you."

"Help? We don't need help. We're adventurers."

"Especially not at 2 in the morning either", the dog replied angrily.

"Oooh talking cats yes but talking dogs not so much." He said after observing Jake's speech. "Let's have a look shall we." The Doctor extended his device and pressed which caused an eerie green light to fill the darkened room. "Incredible," he said at length. "Your DNA, my friend, is rapidly shape shifting, evolving almost, into new structures thousands of times a second. Not unlike a Zygon's I must admit. And you Finn." He turned the device to the young human's body. "Yep you're 100% human. That makes a nice change from all the alien life around here."

"Doctor could you please stop sonic-ing my friends. If you wanted conformation of their identities you could have just asked me. I can vouch for them." The more feminine voice from within the box said.

"Sorry but it was too good an opportunity to miss."

"And who're you calling alien anyway, Mr Timelord." The voice was now playful.

"Err, Doctor, who're you talking to?" Finn asked.

"Oh yes, right, sorry I guess you can't see each other." He stepped back inside the box. "It's ok they're not hostile. Completely safe to come out.

"Doctor, I know. I have met them before, you know."

"All right calm down I was just making sure." When the owner of the second voice stepped out both Finn and Jake did a double take.

"Princess Bubblegum!? Is that really you? No one's seen you in months." They both exclaimed.

"I was, err, busy working on science things."

"Peebles, there's working and then there's disappearing for nearly a year."

"Yeah PB what gives?"

"Sorry to interrupt this joyous reunion but who are Peebles and PB?" Asked the Doctor.

"They're, um, nicknames I have." She replied blushing.

"Good. Great, even. I should get a nickname. Nicknames are cool but anyway I can vouch for the princess when she says she has been working on a project that is of vital importance to the candy kingdom."

"Go on…" Jake said suspiciously.

"After many long months of work your very own princess Bubblegum has created the cure for spontaneous combustion in candy citizens." Bubblegum opened her mouth to explain the Doctor's part in helping but he held up his hand in silence. "She has no doubt saved the lives of a great many people and you should do well to give her thanks and forgive her for her absence." Jake and Finn's suspicious gazes were melted.

"PB that's brilliant. I think we can both forgive you, right Jake?"

"Sure Prubbs. You rock so hard right now."

"Oh it was nothing," Bubblegum said absent-mindedly, looking over at the Doctor, unsure as to why he would give her all of the credit for his brilliance.

"Yeah but as awesome as this is Peebles it is still about 2.30 in the morning, why did you come here?"

"Doctor, you're up." He turned from staring out of the treehouse window.

"Ah yes that's right. Finn, I'm here to talk to you about love." He was deadly serious.

"Wait you brought this complete stranger here to talk to me about Flame princess at 2 in the morning?! That's insane and you know it. Back me up here, bro. Jake?"

"Dude…." Jake's face was a picture of disbelief.

"What? What did I do?" Finn was now very confused.

"Finn I'm sorry. So sorry." It was the Doctor who was now speaking. "But I never said anything about Flame princess. Finn's face went from confused to sad then to angry.

"S-so. I-it doesn't mean anything." He stammered.

"It's ok, Finn. I just want to fix things up between you two, then I'll be off." He spoke with authority yet compassion at the same time.

"F-fix. There's nothing to fix. We're friends, just friends. Everything's cool between us.

"Finn when was the last time you saw her?" Queried Bubblegum, her face full of concern.

"About…."Finn lowered his head. "About a year ago."

"Whoa dude you said it was, like, last week."

"Jake, I lied to make you happy. To stop you worrying that I hadn't gotten over her yet. I guess I was wrong."

"Bro I'll always be there for you but you've got to tell me the truth for that happen. Promise never to lie to me again, ok?"

"I…I promise Jake." The two brothers embraced, not caring about their audience. After several minutes of just staring at the two the Doctor said,

"All right Finn I can see this is a sore subject for you but I can help you through it if you want me to."

"Thanks, Doc, but I'm good. Us adventurers have got to walk the path alone." Was the reply.

"Um it's actually Doctor but never mind that, why are you so obsessed with adventuring?" Bubblegum shot him a look. "I know it's kind of hypocritical but people adventure for different reasons. I travel to see the wonders of the universe and to help others. What's your reason Finn?" Jake cleared his throat. "Oh yes and Jake as well. Sorry Jake." He threw his hands up apologetically.

"I guess we're kinda the same then Doc…"

"Doctor."

"Doc, cos we like to help others as well."

"Well that's great."

"And destroy monsters and evil creatures who stand in our way." He punched the air and redrew his sword while Jake doubled himself in size.

"Not so great. Finn, violence doesn't end violence it just extends it." The doctor turned to Bubblegum whom he noticed was fixated on him. "Those things you saw. Those images in my mind are what happens when you try to use violence as a means to achieve peace." She nodded silently.

"But….it's all we can do. If we didn't destroy the evil that plagues our land then we'd be overrun within the week." Finn clenched his sword tighter. "I won't let that happen again."

"Again?" He took as step away from Bubblegum so that all three were now in his field of vision. "What do you mean again? What aren't you all telling me?" The other three shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. "Ok, ok" He said, after noting their unwillingness. "It's something that you all know but don't talk about which means it's everywhere. Am I right?" They squirmed even more. Finally it was Jake who broke the silence.

"PB he doesn't know yet, does he? You didn't tell him about it yet."

"Tell me what?" He asked. Bubblegum turned to Finn and Jake who were both staring expectantly at her. She sighed.

"About 1000 years ago there was a wa..." She was cut off mid-sentence by the Doctor saying:

"Shhh!"

"Doctor this is the most important piece of information you will hear today! What could be so important for you to stop the telling of the event that shaped our very planet?" She was nearly shaking with rage at his off-handedness.

"Sorry I get that it's important I really do but just shhh for a minute will you." They all stood trans-fixed on his silhouette. "Do you get the feeling we're being watched?" He said, his voice now barely above a whisper." Having said this they became aware of a shallow breathing behind them that they hadn't felt until he had prompted them. "Don't move, don't speak, don't anything", he whispered to the trio. "Now, slowly get behind me. No sudden movements."

They dutifully obeyed and Jake shrank down so as not to make a sound on the creaking floor boards. They all proceed to look at the area next to the window where the breathing was coming from. No one was moving. Then from the opposite corner of the room a small rectangular screen came to life. When it had crossed over to the side of the room the group was on it spoke with in English with a Korean accent.

"Oh hello Finn and Jake. Why are you both out of bed and standing like a statue?"

"BMO not now!" Whispered Jake to the rectangular box. It was too late and it was like a switch had been flipped in the corner, by the window. The whole area came to life with hissing, snarling and growling like an inhuman animal.

"Show yourself!" Yelled the Doctor over the din. Only more hissing was the reply. "Very well, there's a reason that I don't do what I'm about to do next but oh well." He raised his sonic screwdriver into the air and let loose a deafening, screeching blast of sound waves that shattered the windows and made BMO feel queasy. The whole group (excluding the Doctor) dived to the floor for cover and the thrashing in the corner ceased. "That's better." He exclaimed with a grin. "Time to find out what you are then, eh." He adjusted the screwdriver then pressed it again. From their various places on the floor the group they could see a teenage girl with pale skin and dark flowing hair shimmer into view on the ground.

"I don't believe it" cried Jake. Bubblegum and Finn looked at each other before turning back to the figure that was still lying on the ground.

"Marceline!"

* * *

**Plot twist am I right?! No? I'd be interested to hear how you all think this is going along and leave suggestions to what you think is going to happen next. Next part will be uploaded on friday so until then, PozzyP out!**


	5. You have a choice

"You know this person then?" The Doctor said, taking scope of the unconscious vampire. "Please forgive me for rendering her unconscious on the floor."

"No, Doc, it's cool but, man, wasn't there some other way you could have made her visible to us?" Finn moaned whilst rubbing his head. "That tech of yours really packs a punch."

"Well yes I suppose in theory I could have just used the localized dampening function on the sonic to reveal her physical form without wrecking your house. I'm very sorry for that by the way but there was a reason, well several in fact, for doing it." He grabbed Jake's arm and pulled him to his feet.

"Yeah well I suppose it's nothing worse than anything Finn does when he's sleep walking."

"Hey, I don't sleep walk," replied the recovering Finn.

"Yeah and what's the reason for nearly making our ears explode, Doctor?" Bubblegum was now on her feet and staring accusingly at him.

"A thing, a clever thing but let's not talk about that now let's talk about our uninvited guest. What's her deal?" Bubblegum turned away from him towards the still unconscious figure on the ground.

"She's…. a friend of ours, if friend is the right word. She's actually an 1000 year old vampire queen but she only drinks the colour red so that saves us a lot of trouble." Bubblegum explained. The Doctor was less interested in this last bit and more intrigued by her first bit.

"Wait she's not the one that you had the relationsh…?" She hastily pulled him away from Finn and Jake and whispered to him,

"They don't know about that yet."

"Yet? This was years ago. How can you not have told them? They are your friends aren't they?" He whispered back, irritated. She looked down at the floor so her lengthy, pink hair brushed the broken glass that lay there. He looked her up and down and said. "You don't need to be ashamed just because the relationship was same sex. I've got a friend called captain Jack Harkness who'll sleep with anyone regardless of race, gender or even species and it's never bothered him. Or me. So don't be afraid of being judged by others, especially your friends because if they don't accept that then they aren't any friends of yours. Understand?" She looked back up into his deep green eyes.

"You really know how to cheer a girl up don't you?" She said with a smile.

"Years of practice. Now back to the task at hand if Marceline's over 1000 years old then she would have been around at the time of the game changing event, right?" He asked and Bubblegum nodded. Brilliant. 1st person perspective is always very useful." He raised the sonic again and zapped the vampire queen's body and proceeded to read off the results. "Evidence of shape-shifting DNA but not nearly as flexible as yours, Jake." Jake twisted his hands into many different thumbs to give a thumbs up. "Her cells don't resist aging exactly they just don't seem to age at all. How odd."

"Ugh, can you shut up over there I'm trying to sleep." The Doctor looked over at Finn, Jake and Bubblegum, expecting them to have answered him but they shook their heads in unison and pointed to the floor where Marceline's body lay. "I just wanted to have a peaceful night for once but ohhhh no someone had to go and ruin it like always."

"Marceline what are you doing in our house?" Said Finn.

"Dude, I hide in your house all the time. I thought you knew."

"Oh, we thought you were joking when you said that. Actually come to think of it this is really kind of creepy what you're doing. Jake back me up here." Jake made the thumbs up sign again.

"Ugh whatever, can't you just let me sleep for a bit." Came the annoyed reply in her mid-pitched tomboyish voice.

"Sorry but there are forces here at work tonight beyond your control so I'm going to need your help right now, I'm afraid," explained the Doctor. Although her eyes were still closed she spoke with pure venom in her voice.

"Afraid. You don't know the meaning of the word, stranger." Her blood red eyes snapped open and she levitated off the ground to face the owner of the unfamiliar voice. She was taken aback at his reaction, or lack of. He simply stared into her deep red eyes with his own equally deep green ones, unblinking, unwavering.

"Marceline just trust him. Tell him what you know about the war." It was Bubblegum who had spoken.

"And I thought I had left all that kind of thing back home in my universe. The event that happened 1000 years ago that shaped this planet was…..a war." The others nodded silently. "Incidentally what planet is this? I forgot to ask earlier."

"At the moment it's named Ooo but prior to the war it was known by a different name. Earth." It was like an electric charge had been run through the Doctor's spine.

"This is Earth! A real actually parallel Earth! But the environment's all wrong. This timeline must be running ahead of my version. Oh sorry do continue, don't mind me just thinking aloud that's all."

"Yeah umm…" Marceline was not sure to make of the man's eccentric behaviour. "No one is sure how the war started and I was only around 7 at the time so I don't remember much. I just remember the burning and the cold and the loneliness. If it hadn't been for Simon I might have gone completely insane."

"Sorry who's Simon?"

"You met him back in my lab. That's what he's become after wearing the crown for so long," replied Bubblegum looking at Marceline who was holding back tears.

"If you want we can take a break for now." The Doctor placed his hand on Marceline's shoulder and she tensed at the contact.

_"It's been so long since anyone's touched me", she thought. "I'd almost forgotten what it felt like." _She sniffed back her tears and puffed out her chest.

"No I'm cool, Doctor." He seemed unconvinced but didn't voice his concerns. "After the initial crisis we rebuilt the planet, or what was left. Vast swathes of the surface are still much too toxic to support life and there's a massive crater in the west that is thought to be the original bomb site though no one has dared to go near it for over 400 years. The planet was renamed in the aim of celebrating our recovery and giving us a second chance." When Marceline had finished talking it was Finn who continued.

"Now do you see why we have to fight off evil the second it arises? We're too scared to have a repeat of the last time so we strike it down at its source to stop it from ever happening again. I don't care what you say but there isn't another way. We don't have a choice."

"You always have a choice. Don't make my mistakes." The Doctor turned away from the group.

"What do you mean 'your mistakes'? Why're you so interested in the history of the great mushroom war?" Marceline queried.

"And what does this have to do with me and flame princess?" Added Finn.

"And how is this linked to those things I saw in your head, Doctor?" Bubblegum joined in.

"There aren't any good questions left so I'm just gonna sit this one out, guys." They all turned towards Jake before turning back towards the solitary figure over by the broken window. He took a deep breath in and let it out slowly.

"To answer your question, Finn, I need to know all the variables before trying to help you. I prefer the holistic approach to things like this. Your surprise at seeing me makes me think you're the last human around." Finn nodded emotionlessly. "I'm sorry. Marceline and Bubblegum your questions are intertwined into my past and future and have made me the man I am today. I'm not even sure who that is anymore…

Although I have adopted my version of Earth as my new home I come from a world known as Gallifrey. And just like what happened here there was a war. My people, the Timelords, fought a race called the Daleks, only it wasn't just the planet we were fighting for it was the whole of creation. And they lost. Everybody lost. In the final days of the war there were atrocities committed on both sides and some people could no longer tell the two sides apart. Although lots of people took part in the devastation there was one man with more blood on his hands than any other. A man who not only took lives but manipulated others into taking their own. A man that initiated extinctions and committed genocide because he believed there was no other way. But he was wrong and I know…because that man was me." The group stepped back from him in shock. "That was what you saw, Bubblegum, in my mind. Those are the things that I have done and have to live with every waking hour. I have to live knowing that I killed them all. I'm not just a Timelord, I'm the last of the Timelords." After a stunned silence at this revelation it was Finn who spoke first.

"I'm sorry, Doctor. Really sorry, but what has this got to do with me?"

"Finn you are the last of your kind just as I'm the last of mine. I want you to know that there is always a choice. If you ever find yourself in my position where you can destroy them all, don't because it will tear you apart and you'll become the very thing that you hoped to destroy. Think of your friends here." He turned towards the group. "These people care a lot about you so let them help you. If you won't do it for yourself, do it for them. Be the best for them like I never could. Because of what I did my friends are always the best of me, now. Don't let that happen to you." He turned back to the window. Princess Bubblegum made as if to step forward towards him but her hand has grabbed by Marceline.

"Bonnie, what are you doing?" She hissed. "You can't seriously trust this guy after all he just told us can you?"

"I can, Marcy. I know he's done some terrible things but he's just a good person that was forced to do terrible things by circumstance. I know deep down that he's still a good man and I trust him with my life."

"You've only just met him!"

"I've been inside his head and his memories became part of me. I can feel he truly regrets what he has done and he is so, so alone Marcy. You were alone when we first met and I helped you become better and now I'm going to help him as well. With or without you." Marceline dropped her head in defeat.

"Alright Bonnie, but this is on you," she sulked. Bubblegum then walked over to the Doctor, who was still looking out of the window.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"Look I know you think that because you did something terrible that means you're terrible but have you ever stopped to think what would have happened had you not stopped the war?" He remained silent at her question. "If the conflict was as bad as you say it was then maybe you made the right decision." He spun around sharply at her statement.

"The right decision? The right decision?" His eyes were alight. "Because of me billions of people are dead and my entire planet has been knocked out of the sky. How can you say it was justified?"

"What would have happened if you hadn't? Answer me that, Doctor." Bubblegum returned fiercely.

"They would've…the war would have spread and consumed everything" His temper vanished. "Everybody in the universe would have perished if I hadn't stopped it. My own people would have ripped the time vortex apart in a desperate bid to escape. I had to stop them." He paused.

"You see? I don't believe that you would have condemned your entire universe to ultimate destruction just because you believed that to kill anyone at all was wrong. Those wonders you say you travel around to see. Where would they be? All those people you save day in day out would not exist if you hadn't done what you did. I'm not saying what you did was right but don't be so hard on yourself. To countless people, me included, you're a hero."

"I'm no hero. Killing even to save others is wrong."

"You would sacrifice all life in the universe for your belief? You would kill everybody in known creation because you believe killing is itself wrong?"

"Uhhh….yes…no…I… I don't know, princess. I really don't know what to think." He looked forlornly out of the window and across the grassy plains.

"You can call me Bonnibel. Or just Bonnie if you prefer." He turned back towards the pink figure who was framed in the moonlight.

"I thought only family and close friends can call you by your first name?"

"Yes, they can." Bubblegum smiled at the Doctor and he smiled back.

"Thank you, that means a lot to me. I really needed that today, and in return I'm going to help you now with your problems. All of you and all of your problems. Right you lot, over here to the window." Jake and Finn walked over while Marceline floated gracefully. "What do you see outside?"

"Uh. Just the darkness, Doc. Nothing that I can see," said Jake who had morphed into a pair of binoculars.

"Me neither", said Marceline and Finn in unison.

"Ok princess Bubblegum I'll ask you a different question. Which direction are we facing?" He straightened his bow tie as he said this.

"About north, north west maybe?" She shrugged.

"Great and where is the candy kingdom located relative to the tree house?"

"Well I'd say northwest from here."

"So we're facing it then." His voice was now serious.

"Yes I suppose we are. Doctor, what are you getting at?" It was Marceline who had now spoken.

"So if we are facing the kingdom, and it's currently…" He held up his watch and looked at it. "..3.15 in the morning then where are all the lights? I mean I know people go to sleep at night (this made Marceline giggle) but are you seriously expecting me to believe that not one person is either working late or reading in bed anywhere in a kingdom of this size? I used that sonic blast earlier to see if anyone would come running from the kingdom to see what it was because they definitely should have heard it from here."

"Dude, it's been that way for months." Finn said.

"WHAT?" The Doctor and Bubblegum gasped.

"Yeah, Peebles, we assumed you were causing it or at least knew about it." Jake was being completely serious for once.

"We thought you were using the power to use for one of your silly little science experiments." Chimed Marceline which got her a glare from Bubblegum. "And where have you been anyway? I haven't seen you in like forever. When I tried to visit, the Banana guards said you were busy and turned me away," sulked the vampire queen.

"How could you not know about this, PB? You've been living there for the past year while it's been going on. I suppose you don't even know about the disappearances." Jake exclaimed to the thoroughly confused princess.

"Wait Doctor confused, Doctor very confused. What disappearances. When? How? Why?"

"Do you wanna take this one or shall I?" Finn asked Jake.

"Nah you got this, man."

"About two months back we noticed that throughout the candy kingdom there were people missing. The lollipop twins and Mr Cupcake are just some of them. Even the Gumball guardians are gone. When me and Jake walk through the streets these days in search of adventures there's no one there at all. We tried to contact you but you never answer your holo-receiver and the banana guards won't let us in."

"Bonnie, are you that out of touch with your own kingdom that you don't even realize these things? Do you even care about your subjects?" Marceline's voice was rising. "Neglecting your friends is one thing but your citizens? That's bad even by your standards."

"My standards? How dare you Marceline! Don't tell me how to run my kingdom." Bubblegum raised her fist at her.

"Yeah because you're doing a great job of that at the minute." She laughed sarcastically at the pink princess. Bubblegum made as if to hit her but the Doctor stepped in between the two.

"No violence." His tone and words caused the two girls to shrink and Finn and Jake to just stare. "Not here not ever. Not while my hearts are still beating because I know you're better than this. You have a choice." He looked long and hard at the pair of squabblers which made them feel guilty.

"Sorry, Marcy", Bubblegum sighed.

"I'm sorry too, Bonnie…please forgive me."

"Of course." When the two had made up and hugged each other, the Doctor asked Bubblegum,

"I thought you said you gave instructions to your butler everyday so you didn't have to leave the lab? You must have seen him at least once in these past few months." He stated.

"We only ever spoke on the intercom and I was much too busy to leave to check he was actually doing it. I ate, worked and slept in the lab." She said, shamefacedly.

"Uhhhh," Said Finn. "What did you eat PB?"

"Um, well I just used my equipment to recycle….other things." She replied.

"Ewww come on, princess, that's plain nasty." Marceline screwed up her face in disgust.

"It was all in the line of duty" She protested. Jake and Finn started laughing. "What's so funny you two?"

"You said duty." Finn said in between laughs and then continued along with Jake.

"Oh very funny." She placed her hands on her hips. "Doctor help me out here. Doctor?" She looked over to him and saw he was trying unsuccessfully to conceal a grin and when he saw she was looking at him he burst out laughing as well. "Not you as well." She looked over at Marceline but she too was laughing in hysterics. "Come on guys it's not that funny!" This only caused them to laugh even harder, causing her to nearly scream in despair. After a few long minutes of laughing the Doctor calmed down enough to say.

"Blimey that's more fun than I've had in a long time. Right you lot I think we all need some rest." Finn had also calmed down enough to express his disapproval.

"Wait shouldn't we go to the candy kingdom right now to see what's going on and find the missing people?"

"If they've been gone for as long as you say they have there's not a lot we can do for them. Not to say we're giving up hope but we won't be any use to them if we're all tired out." Finn and Jake turned around and made to head back upstairs to their room. The Doctor called them back. "Sorry but under the circumstances I think it's safer if we all sleep in the TARDIS tonight. You too Marceline."

"Sorry what's the TARDIS?" Finn asked, frowning. The Doctor pointed behind him to the tall blue box. "You're kidding right. Even with Marceline floating we'd never all fit in there. Not ever." He said shaking his head at the idea.

"Finn, trust him on this." It was Bubblegum who had spoken. "Looks can be deceiving, right Doctor?" He snapped his fingers and the doors opened, showering the room in a brilliant glow. Marceline made to protect herself from the light but was surprised when she realized that it wasn't burning her skin.

"Follow me," the Doctor announced and swiftly turned on his heel and entered the box. They all obeyed without question and followed him inside. "Bedrooms are there, there and there." He pointed in several different directions towards openings in the walls.

"It's-it's bigger on the inside!" Marceline's mouth formed on "O" shape.

"I love it when people say that. Not like what you said, Bonnie." He frowned at her.

"Hey what I said was correct scientific terminology. Don't be mad at me for ruining your moment."

"Correct terminology?" He spluttered. "I think you'll find that dimensionally transcendental is the phrase you were looking for. 'At a variance' is a poor person's scientific term." She glared at him but couldn't help smiling at his scientific mind.

"Dude, you gotta teach me how to do this", Jake butted in. "I'd save so much space with all the junk Finn brings home from adventuring."

"Hey it's not junk, it's valuable." He retorted.

"Maybe tomorrow, Jake, but right now we all need a good nights sleep. Everyone." He said looking straight at Bubblegum.

"Goodnight, Doc."

"See you in the morning, dude." Finn and Jake both left in the same direction while taking in the surroundings of the control room.

"I guess I'll be off as well. Night guys." Marceline said as she headed off in the opposite direction.

"Goodnight, Doctor. And thank you. For everything."

"Go to sleep, Bonnie", he said in a stern voice. As she left the console room the Doctor breathed out a long sigh and slumped back in his chair, wondering what the next day would bring.

* * *

**And so ends chapter 5. Let me know where you think this is going in the comments or just how it's doing in general. I really enjoyed writing this as it focuses on the Doctor's past and reactions of the others when faced with it. Next chapter goes up on tuesday. (If you haven't already guessed I upload on tuesdays and fridays.) Till the next time, PozzyP out!**


	6. TARDIS flight

Princess Bubblegum woke from what she thought was the best sleep she had had in years. Momentarily confused, she looked around at her beautifully furbished surroundings and the events of the last night suddenly came flooding back in waves. The treehouse. She had been at the treehouse, but why? She couldn't quite remember. Finn had been there and seemed to be either very scared or very passionate about something. The image was too fuzzy to grasp clearly.

Jake had been there too though he hadn't said much, only twisted his body into an assortment of different shapes. Something was clearly wrong though and they both appeared to be angry with her for something. The scene shifted to the left and a deafening screech could be heard. All of the glassware shattered and where the window had been stood Marceline.

Had she been the one to make that noise? She'd never done it before but then again she'd always been slightly unpredictable. As the memories crawled back, Bubblegum became aware of another presence in the treehouse. It seemed so familiar and yet distant at the same time. Her memory-self turned around to where she could feel its existence emanating from.

The figure she saw was tall and his features were shrouded in shadow. He was facing away but soon turned towards her when he realized he was being watched. The moonlight caught his features and …BAM! She sat bolt upright in the bed and nearly hit her head on the ceiling. She looked over the side and saw she was nearly a metre off the ground due to her now remembering that her bed was a bunk bed.

She hypothesised that she must have been too tired to have noticed last night. Last night! The man! The Doctor! She recalled all of the many great things they had done in the past day in all their minute details. Had it really only been a day? She felt as if she had known him so much longer. His jawline. His eyes of deep green. His mop-like mass of hair. It all felt so natural to her. She supposed this was natural considering she had walked through his memories like a walk through the candy cane meadows.

Even though she now could recall what he had said to Finn and the others about abstinence from violence and to not make his mistakes she still couldn't help but wonder how he could live with himself after all he had done. To walk among the ruins and destruction had been one thing but to know that you were the one responsible? How could he sleep at night? Sleep at night. Bubblegum jumped again and was rewarded with a bruise on her cheek when she realized that she'd also spent the night in the TARDIS with him. What had she been thinking? Not only had she only just met this man but she also knew he was responsible for the deaths of billions and she had just waltzed in last night knowing all this.

She mentally slapped herself for being so careless and unscientific. And yet. All the time she'd spent with him she got the feeling that although he had a penchant for lying she somehow knew she could trust him. She had been inside his mind, true. And seen the result of his rage and fury, also true. What was also true, however, was the feelings of remorse and guilt he now felt for committing such atrocities. This was someone who was truly broken and sorry, so sorry for what he had done and had now dedicated his life to helping others in the way no one could help him. She felt a pang of guilt for her reservations.

_"Look at all the things he's done for me. For my friends as well." _Fighting off the ice king without a thought to his own wellbeing. Taking the time to help her come to terms with not just love and loss but her very existence. The way he had selflessly given his time to recreate the anti-combustion serum despite having only just met her. He could have just as easily taken off again in his ingenious machine after landing but no, he had instead gone to the last human she knew of to talk about becoming a better person instead of exploring the many wonders of his new residence.

_"Yes. I've made up my mind. After observing him for the past 12 or so hours I can safely say that the Doctor is on our side. He's the only one who has made sense so far after all the things that have happened. I can trust him and I now know he would give his life for any one of us and I would entrust him with my own. He can be relied upon and is deep down a good person who I am proud to call my friend."_

Her thoughts on her new ally and friend were interrupted by the smell of something delicious that had wafted through the crack between the intricately carved white wooden door and the wall of equally white wallpaper. It was so strong she could almost taste it and boy did it taste good. Being a candy person the only thing Bubblegum ever ate was candy, save for the occasional bacon omelette Jake provided and stale pizza she had delivered to the lab, so the indescribable smell of non-candy related cooking was music to her ears (or nose, rather).

Her train of thought lost, she climbed down the ladder to the white carpeted floor and sought to investigate the airborne intruder that was causing her mouth to water. Before reaching the door, however, she noticed she was still wearing her pink dress from the day before and wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"How unlady-like to sleep without changing," she muttered to herself. "This won't do. Maybe there's clothes in the dresser I can borrow?" The dresser in question was wooden (white again) and displayed even more intricate carvings than the door. "This must have cost a fortune. Does he have a day job besides adventurer?" Bubblegum wondered to no one in particular, and no one in particular heard her. She walked over to the dresser, loving the way the plush white carpet felt on her bare feet. Looking through the drawers she quickly realized it was deceivingly big, maybe bigger on the inside like the TARDIS itself was.

"I wonder who "Metallica" are," She pondered as she flicked through the t-shirts and catching a glimpse of the name. Eventually she settled for one a black one with the words "Status Quo" printed in red (subconsciously remembering that Marceline's favourite colours are black and red) and put on a pair of tracksuit bottoms to match. She then turned to the mirror that was hanging up, brushed her hair with a conveniently placed comb that lay on the dresser, and set out to find the source of the rapidly fading smell.

It wasn't long before she found its source as, although the corridors were winding and lengthy, she found herself able to navigate them with ease._ Is it helping me through the maze? Is it alive? _Bubblegum quickly pushed the idea of the TARDIS being a living thing out of her head; it made her dizzy. After a few minutes of traversing the interior corridors of the ship and feeling the chill of the cold metal flooring under her bare feet (in her desperation to follow the smell she had completely forgotten to put shoes or socks on), she rounded the corner and finally reached the source of the smell. It was emanating from a room which put her mighty palace kitchen to shame. To say it was a kitchen at all was an understatement.

Lining the blue and white tiled walls were countless appliances of varying shapes and sizes, most of which she could only guess their function. In the centre of the room, lying on the brightly coloured linoleum flooring, was a table made of a futuristic looking white metal which both Finn and Jake were currently sitting around on multi coloured giant bean bags.

"Hi guys", she waved at them from across the room.

"Morning, princess," Finn smiled whilst stifling a yawn.

"Whassup, PB?" Jake split his hands into more hands which all waved at her. "What's with the shirt?" His 50, or so, waving hands stopped and pointed to the rock band shirt.

"Uh, well, umm…" She thought frantically for a second. "Colour palette, yes that's it I just thought I might change it up a bit. Wearing pink all the time gets boring after a while." Though she could control her speech pattern to appear in control, she could not, however, control her interior chemical processes which resulted in a slight blush forming onto her light pink cheeks. Finn and Jake looked at each other and pretended not to notice.

"What'cha sitting on there? Bubblegum hastily tried to divert attention away from herself by commenting on the rainbow coloured bean-bags the duo were sitting on. Finn opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by another voice that came from across the room.

"They're giant bean-bags. Giant bean bags are cool. Much more interesting on long flights than just regular chairs and they do wonders for your posture." Bubblegum jumped and turned around to see the Doctor cooking something up on the other side of the room in a giant frying pan which she presumed to be the source of the amazing smell. "Good morning, princess." He waved with one arm and continued to shake the pan with his other.

"Good morning, Doctor", She waved back while noting he was still wearing his outfit from the night before. "_Did he change his clothes before going to bed? Did he even go to bed? What a hypocrite." _Aside from his strange outfit she also noticed he was wearing a tall, white, cylindrical shaped hat. "Er, Doctor?" Bubblegum ventured.

"Yes, hello there," he smiled and waved again, still cooking.

"What, in all that is sane, are you wearing on your head?"

"Oh this." He pointed upwards to the garment. "It's a chef's hat. I wear a chef's hat now and it's cool. I got this from a cheerful bloke called Jamie Oliver as thanks for stopping some aliens from stealing his recipes. It helps me concentrate when cooking." He grinned his impish grin at her. She smiled back but noticed they were one person short.

"Guy's have you seen Marceline anywhere?" She looked around and didn't find her.

"_Yikes, since when did PB care so much about Marcy? They're not really on great terms." _Finn thought.

_"Yeah, man it's kind of strange that all of a sudden she's concerned for her. Maybe we missed something?" _Finn turned slowly towards Jake.

_"Dude can you hear my thoughts?" _

_"Yeah."_ Jake nodded.

_"How come?"_

_"TARDIS telepathic circuits. It gets inside your head a bit, sorry." _Finn heard the Doctor's voice echo through his mind as well.

_"Wait so did Bubblegum just hear what I said? Man I am soooo screwed." _

_"Relax, Finn. It only connects people who are part of the same blood line, or have at least been adopted in to it. Basically it only does family. Your reservations about her are safe." _The Doctor smiled silently from across the room.

_"Wait how come we can hear you then. We're not related or anything," _Jake asked, confusedly.

_"I'm part of the circuit. I complete it and allow the memories to flow, like being the wire between two different bulbs. Plus I'm mildly psychic anyway. But this only works in the TARDIS." _He said, noticing their distrustful looks at him, not keen on him hearing their thoughts. "_Although the translation circuits can be used outside the box, the telepathic communication field only extends to the edge of the walls. Trust me I've tried to extend it but it's faulty like a lot of the stuff here. That reminds me. Because princess Bubblegum can't hear what we're saying now we've been in complete silence from her perspective for the lastminute or so."_

"Err, guys. Guys? Didn't you hear me? Guy's, where's Marceline? GUY'S?!" After observing complete silence for about a minute Bubblegum was becoming paranoid.

"Um, oh yeah," Finn replied, rubbing his head after the psychic transfer. "No sorry, we haven't seen her yet."

"Calm down already." She's always been a heavy sleeper." Jake also rubbed his head.

"All the more for us then." The trio turned towards the Doctor, who had now finished cooking and was dishing up the heavenly smelling dish from the pan onto five separate plates. "Bon appetite is the phrase which is most appropriate, I think." He walked over to the table, expertly balancing the five plates on his arms and set them down onto the metallic surface with a quiet clang. He then passed them around so there was one in front of everyone with one spare (for Marceline.) There was a general mumble from the crowd when they saw what was on the plates. "Oh come on I know it looks bad but it smells and tastes a lot better than anything you've ever had. Trust me."

"Let me get this straight, Doc." It was Jake who spoke up. "You have a machine that can practically fly through space, and that's brilliant and all, but is scrambled eggs really the best you could do?"

"Now, now, Jake I'm sure that it's very much edible and we should give our thanks to him for taking the time to prepare this for us," Bubblegum interjected but was equally wary of the food in front of her. While it did smell amazing it also looked like someone had thrown up onto the plate. It was all sticky and goopy and the colour was on off yellow, nearly orange. It reminded her of one of the many brains she had dissected in her lab back home and made her want to vomit. Never the less she swallowed her pride and took a bite out of her own portion. Her face went from repulsion to surprise to incredulity.

"Wow. It really does taste as good as it looks. Appearances really can be deceiving can't they, Doctor?" His smile crept back when Bubblegum said this and Finn and Jake looked at each other. A look of understanding passed between them and, although they hadn't said anything, they knew they had to beat the other in a race to finish the plate first. As they wolfed down the dish the Doctor calmly tucked into his own after seeing they were satisfied. When they had finished it was Finn who was first to speak.

"Duuuuude! That was totes amazing! Where did you learn to cook?" He wiped some off the stray yellow reside from his lip and back into his mouth.

"Paris, 18th century. Or was it 17th? Never can seem to remember."

"That was totally awesome, dude. I hate to say it but you're a better cook than me. You gotta forgive me for sayin' scrambled eggs wasn't cool. It really, really is." Jake was nearly in tears.

"No apology needed, Jake. Sometimes you've just got to say "what the hell" and jump right in." He fixed his bowtie and set his chef's hat down on the counter to the side. His attention was grabbed by princess Bubblegum clearing her throat.

"Thank you, Doctor. That was by far the best thing I have ever eaten and it certainly beats week old pizza and cold coffee. How can I ever repay you?" He was surprised by her formal response but never the less responded in the same way he had to Jake.

"Hey just knowing I did a good job's more than enough for me. Give yourself credit for trying it in the first place." It was her turn to be surprised at his humble attitude. He was the one who had done all the work and yet he wouldn't accept anything in return. This reminded her of the anti-spontaneous combustion serum he had created for her but her theories on the Doctor's motives were interrupted by a familiar figure walked into view.

"What took you so long, Marceline?" Finn asked the vampire queen. "I thought you would be the first one to investigate the smells that hang around this place seeing as you have much better senses than any of us."

"I'm over 1000 years old. I don't stick to schedules. Plus I over slept but mostly the first point." She looked over to the Doctor. "Hey why can't I fly in here? I can't even hover and I want to know what you've done. Now!" Her eyes were glowing red and Jake began to feel uneasy.

"What have I done? Done?" He was confused but then noticed that for once she had both feet planted firmly on the ground. "Oh it's just the artificial gravity. I can't make the real stuff so I just engineer it in here but it automatically orientates to the nearest plane. So unlike Ooo's or Earth's it doesn't pull you down to the centre of the mass it just pulls you down to the nearest surface. That make sense?"

"No", said everyone except Bubblegum.

"Good because that's not what it's like at all, but if it helps you feel any better then it is."

"Yeah whatever, nerd. Golly it's like having another one of you around isn't it, Bonnie?" She laughed which earned her a murderous look from Bubblegum. Eager to prevent another fight Finn quickly intervened.

"Boy you must be hungry Marceline so why don't you try some of the Doctor's scrambled eggs. I know it looks bad but just try it." He closed his eyes at the memory of the meal.

"Finn, you know I only eat the colour red. I haven't eaten regular mortal food in forever and I'm not about to start now." She turned away in a huff.

"Not to worry I've got just the thing." The Doctor stuck his arm much deeper into his pocket than should have been physically possible and started rummaging around.

_"Whoa those pockets are uber deep. What does he carry around that's so important?" _Jake thought.

"Ah ha." He pulled his arm out which was now holding an apple. This should fill you right up." He threw the apple to Marceline who nearly missed as she forgot she couldn't fly. She examined it with her pale grey hand and held it up to the light where she saw the outline of a face illuminated.

"Doctor why is there a face carved into it. It's a bit weird don't you think?"

"Oh. I had this friend whose aunt used to carve faces into fruit. I guess I must have taken up the habit as well." He looked down at the ground.

"What do you mean "had"", she pressed.

"Marcy, stop that!" Bubblegum hissed while she elbowed her in the side. "Look what you've done to him." Marceline looked over to the tweed clad figure who now had a faraway look in his eyes and her own eyes widened from harsh red to a more caring deep brown.

"Oh I-I didn't mean to upset you. I'm sorry." Her grey features displayed a great magnitude of guilt.

"No, no it's fine. Really it's fine, I'm fine. We should probably go back to your lab, Bonnie, to see about your missing people," he said absent-mindedly whilst clearing the plates away. His eyes lit up and his smile resurfaced. "No time like the present, eh?" Bubblegum smiled back but knew underneath his cheerful exterior that Marceline had struck a nerve. She looked at the apple that the vampire was currently draining of colour and wondered why, a fruit of all things, had had such a profound effect on him.

* * *

**A/N. Next time we get more involved in the plot of the story for those who want some action (I'm looking at you over there). Feel free to leave some feedback telling me if I've got the character interactions done well and how you think the plot will develop. Thanks again for you guy's support, couldn't have done it without you. **


	7. The missing people

Unlike the first time she had seen the Doctor pilot the TARDIS, princess Bubblegum noticed that he was much more calculating and methodical this time around. He was careful, sluggish even, in pressing the buttons and switches on the console and walked slowly around instead of leaping and dancing. Marceline also noticed his change in mood.

_"You went and hurt the only person who would understand, who could help you. You're such an idiot and now he'll never want to help." _Marceline opened her mouth to apologize again for the incident with the apple but was cut off by a sudden jolt as the TARDIS re-landed (much more steadily this time) in Bubblegum's lab. The doors opened and the Doctor was the first out, scanning for signs of danger. When he was satisfied they were safe he immediately made his way back over to the laptop he had been studying earlier but was this time joined by Bubblegum, closely followed by Finn, Jake and Marceline.

"Ah, it feels so good to float around again," Marceline said after realizing she could fly. You jealous, Bon-bon?" The pink princess shot her a warning glare before turning back to the laptop where everybody was watching the Doctor scroll through the pages, too fast for anyone, except him, to read anything. After about 30 seconds the crowd was rewarded with him saying:

"There we are. I knew it was in here somewhere."

"Doctor, what exactly are you looking for? All that's on here are my experiment notes and results." Bubblegum had her hands on her hips accusingly.

"Really, princess? Because I think there's something a lot more important on here than all of that combined. Something that you've hidden from your friends here…" Finn, Jake and Marceline all looked at each other at this. "…something that you didn't want them to see." His voice wasn't harsh but it wasn't friendly either.

"PB what's going on?" Finn asked the now fidgeting monarch.

"Nothing!" She said, a little too quickly. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Come on, Bon-Bon, we can all tell when you're lying so just get on with it already," Marceline taunted her whilst crossing her legs, mid-air.

"All right fine! You got me but I didn't want any of you to worry, that's all. I thought if anyone found out about it there'd be mass panic and I don't think I can deal with everybody looking for me to help all at once."

"Peebs, what are you on about?" Queried Finn.

"She means that she didn't want anybody to find out about the massive tear in the space-time continuum that now exists a few thousand miles above the planet's surface. Or that I'm not the first one to come through? Am I, Bonnie?" The Doctor gazed levelly at her.

"Whoa hold on. Nerd alert! Can you explain all of that again but in English, please?" Jake spoke up. Bubblegum sighed.

"There's a crack in our universe that leads to another world." She looked around to Finn and Jake who had their mouths hanging open. "It just appeared from nowhere nearly 6 months ago. That's what I've been studying aside from making the anti-combustion serum. I came to the conclusion that it was opened from your end, Doctor, but judging from your expression I can deduce you thought the opposite."

"Yes, I should have seen it sooner." He said whilst ignoring her statement. "You asked who I was but not where I had come from so you must have already guessed by the time I had landed, yes?"

"Yes… I'm sorry you guys but I was afraid of scaring you all at the thought that aliens could come and visit us, and possibly try to harm us." Her pink hair brushed the table nearby as she lowered her head.

"Are you kidding? That sounds awesome PB!"

"Yeah I'd love to meet aliens." Finn and Jake both exclaimed.

"Wait so you're not mad at me for not telling you?"

"Honestly we're more mad that you locked yourself in here for 9 months without telling us." Bubblegum smiled at this but noticed Marceline hadn't said anything for a while.

"What about you, Marcy? Can you forgive me?" She looked over to the floating vampire queen.

"For that to happen I'd first have to forgive you for the previous thing you did that hurt me. You know I can't do that and you also know why I can't do that." An awkward silence hung in the room after this exchange but Marceline shortly added. "Besides, what's that about other people coming through, Bon?" The Doctor looked expectantly over to the pink princess who sighed again, vaguely disappointed that she couldn't reconcile with Marceline over their friendship.

"About two months ago there was some massive rift activity. I thought that it was going to close but then there was this brilliant light show that lit up the sky. I know it doesn't sound like much but it was really amazing to watch."

"Wait so there's no actual other aliens? Man that sucks," Finn grumbled.

"I wouldn't be so sure Finn." The Doctor stroked his chin. "Using light shows to distract the opponent and then sneaking off somewhere else is a text book manoeuvre. I've seen it used by the Sontarans on countless occasions, amongst others.

"Wait now there ARE other aliens here? Man I'm confused." Jake muttered.

"I'm with Jake on this one, Doc. I think we would have noticed if there'd been a spaceship crash land here and if they did, where are they?" Finn asked him.

"Low level perception filter perhaps but I can't shake this feeling that I'm missing something. Something really obvious that I'm staring in the face. I just can't put my finger on it." He ran his hand through his mop of brown hair and sighed. As if on cue he gradually became aware of a thumping noise outside of the lab, which was gradually getting closer.

Finn drew his sword and assumed a defensive stance while Jake turned into giant club. Marceline just flew down to the floor next to Bubblegum which made the latter slightly uncomfortable. The thumping increased until two tall, yellow banana's burst into the lab and saluted the princess while raising their spears. Finn and Jake both relaxed but the Doctor jumped back which made Marceline swing round to look at him. She saw a mixture of surprise and (surprisingly for her) horror on his face.

"Banana guards!" Bubblegum said in disbelief. "Where have you been?" Although the banana guards don't usually speak with a lot of intelligence or emotion the speech that came out was practically robotic.

"It does not matter your majesty but we saw an object crash through the roof and we have come to take you to a more secure location." He stared blankly ahead.

"But that was yesterday. Did I engineer you that badly that you didn't think to check if I was ok on the day it happened?!" Her temper was rising but the guards continued to look straight ahead.

"We're sorry your highness please accept our apologies. Now please come with us to safety." The guard took a step forward.

"Princess…" The Doctor said casually. "Get back from them."

"What, why? I know they're a bit dim witted but they mean well." Her temper was now focused on the Timelord.

"Oh trust me they don't mean well and I don't think they have in a long time. Now please get away from them!" His voice was now more urgent and he held out his hand. Marceline picked up on his tone and suddenly all the puzzle pieces fell into place.

"Do as he says, Bonnie." She said shakily.

"You as well? What's the matter with you two? What's wrong with them? They're just doing their job like I told them to."

"Come on, princess, use that incredible brain of yours. Notice everything. Finn, what did you say about walking through the candy kingdom?"

"Uhhhh…that it was…" The wave of realization hit him and Jake square on. "That it was deserted. Princess get behind us now!" He re-drew his sword and nodded to Jake who readied his club hand.

"You guys, now? What did I miss?" Her voice was now devoid of anger and now held more fear than anything else.

"If the kingdom was deserted and no-one was around." The Doctor gestured towards the guards while for the first time noticing the silver earpieces they wore. "…then why are they still here?" Bubblegum turned slowly back around to face the guard who was now holding his spear above his head. He swung down but Finn was quicker and deftly blocked the strike against the monarch. The two guards looked at each other, unblinking. They turned deliberately towards the group and when they spoke it was in unison and definitely not of their world.

"ALERT, ALERT WE ARE DETECTED! DESTROY THE SURVIORS! DELETE THEM!" Their voices were now much deeper and almost growl like, like metal being scraped across stone. They raised their spears and engaged Finn and Jake in combat while Bubblegum ran over to the computer and started gathering up her remaining equipment. The Doctor, however, caught her and said:

"There's no time, Bonnie. We have got to get out of here right now or you'll die." The urgency in his voice was apparent as he looked over to where Finn had been thrown against the wall. "We need to leave."

"Doctor I can take care of myself. I don't need you to protect me from anything, ok?" She continued packing.

"Now! You want to do this now?!" He glanced over to where Jake had disarmed one of them and was fighting hand to hand. "Marceline take her into the TARDIS. She'll be safe there." He locked eyes with her and a moment of understanding passed between them. She then looped her arms through Bubblegum's and pulled her away from the surface top.

"Hey get off me! Let me go, Marcy, I can take care of myself! Doctor stop her!" She yelled and struggled but the vampire queen was a lot stronger than her and she was dragged back into the welcoming doors of the TARDIS. He breathed a sigh of relief but his victory was short lived as he remembered Finn and Jake.

"Finn! Jake! Fall back. We need to leave right now!" He shouted over the fighting. They looked at each other and Jake used his stretching powers to get them to the TARDIS before either guard could react. Satisfied that his friends were safe, the Doctor made his way over to the blue box.

"I'm sorry," was the only thing he said before opening the door and going back inside.

* * *

"What the hell was that for?" Yelled princess Bubblegum. "You had no right to drag me out of there when that laptop was all I had left. AND IT"S GONE!" She had been like this non-stop ever since the TARDIS had been in flight and while originally the Doctor had been ignoring her, his patience eventually gave out and he ended up rounding on her.

"What's more important the laptop or your life?!" He stared straight at her and she returned it straight back.

"That laptop contained all the notes I've ever made and it could've helped save thousands of lives. My life is nothing compared to those of my citizens." She was practically screaming at him while the others looked nervously on. They'd never seen Bubblegum, or the Doctor for that matter, so worked up.

"You don't have any citizens," he shot back. "Finn, what's the estimated population census for the candy kingdom around a year ago?" He was now calmer which scared the onlookers even more.

"Er, well, um, er I'd have to say about 2 million," he stuttered.

"All dead." His words hung in the air. "Everything you worked for, everyone you cared about is gone because now I know who we're dealing with I know I can't save them. I'm sorry. I need everybody I can to be on my side so I couldn't let you take the laptop because there's no one left for you to save and your life is much more of use to me alive. Understand?!" With this said he turned on his heel back to the console and began setting the landing controls.

Bubblegum was gobsmacked. Her entire world had fallen to pieces and the man who she believed to be responsible just stood there like… she didn't know what.

In his moment of blind fury the Doctor realized he had completely forgotten about how she might feel about his reasoning and was overcome with guilt. When he turned to apologize for his tactless outburst he discovered Bubblegum was nowhere to be found and the others were just staring at him in pure shock/ horror.

_"The Daleks have often said that my greatest weakness is my compassion but they're wrong. My inability to control myself, my rage, is my greatest curse. And it just cost me a dear friend. It's Amy all over again. How many more will I let join her? No. I've got to send them away before I hurt any more of my companions. My companions? Is that what they are now? No… I've got to let them go before it's too late."_

"Now do you see?" He sadly addressed the remaining group. "This is why I travel alone. When I meet other people I turn their whole world inside-out. I try,I really do, to help others but the rage of a Timelord soon turns me into the very thing I was trying to prevent. I can completely understand if you want me to take you back to your homes. Go home and forget his ever happened. I'll deal with the threat and I'll keep you out of harm's way." His melancholy demeanour was turned into pure disbelief at their response.

"No. I've seen the threat and this is our home so I want to help." It was Finn who had spoken. "I swore to protect this land from evil and that's what I'm going to do."

"Get over yourself, Doctor. This is no time for moping about or playing hero." Marceline was now talking. "What you said to Bonnibel was just what she needed to hear. We were all thinking it but it took someone braver than me to tell her and I know she would have sooner died getting the laptop than fleeing but you were right to save her. We need her alive on this." _I need her alive on this._

"Man, I can understand why she's all upset but the truth hurts and she needed to know that. The truth." Jake had gathered his confidence to speak. "What's our next move?"

"Um, well…", the Doctor was still in shock over the response he had gotten. He had messed up in the worst way possible and yet they still wanted to help. _I made one of them cry and if that's not crossing the line then I don't know what is. How can they be so forgiving? I wish I could be more like them. _"Ok, ok since you're staying, which I really appreciate by the way…" Finn and Jake bumped fists and Marceline snorted. "… I think you should know who we're dealing with. We can tell Bonnie later." He looked over in the direction she had ran. "I think she needs some time to herself. Any way after observing the banana guards I can safely say who our enemy is up against. They are the stuff of nightmares and will destroy this whole planet in an endless quest for total domination."

"Doctor, who are they?" Marceline was fixated on the bowtie clad figure. He looked towards Finn and exhaled.

"I'm sorry, Finn, really I am. I am so, so sorry but they're you."

"WHAT!" The trio cried in unison.

"At least they once were, but now they've replaced their flesh and blood for plastic and metal and now they're known by a different name. The cybermen."

"So…" Finn was at a loss for words. "So… they're humans?! Real actual other humans?!

"No." Finn's face fell at this. "Not anymore. Originally they were humans just like you but they've technologically upgraded themselves into soulless killers who want everything to be like them. They're not like any of the evil you've ever faced in this land. They're not evil. They've removed even that part of their humanity and now all that's left is a cold, emotionless shell. And now they know we know they're here, they will try to kill us. And on top of that all those people who disappeared have had their personality, they're essence, drained and have been converted into one of them. We…I have to get rid of 2 million more cybermen as well as the original ones. Do you still want to stay?"

"Doc, I appreciate that you think it's too dangerous for us to fight but what are you going to do to stop them if not fight?" Finn questioned him.

"A thing." His stupid grin was back.

"Er, a thing, Doctor? A plan?"

"Nope a thing, clever thing in progress. But in order for this to work I'm going to need a huge amount of energy and I'm not sure they'll be enough." You could practically see the gears turning in the Doctors incredible brain as he considered every possible scenario and the outcomes they would bring.

"Our microwave is pretty powerful and there's always Beemo." Jake spoke up.

"Microwave, maybe not but what's Beemo?" He pondered while fixing his bowtie again.

"It's me, everyone. Hello!" The whole group (Doctor included) jumped back at the little cyan coloured square box which appeared from behind the main console.

"Beemo have you been here the whole time?"

"Why yes, Jake. You interrupted me charging last night and this place seemed very good for charging so I followed you in here. It's very cosy. Did I disturb you? Please continue." He then proceeded to throw his cable up to the main console where it lodged expertly in a docking port. "Bye everybody!" He smiled then his screen went blank.

"Anyway… Doctor, why do we need so much energy? What's it all for?" Marceline asked after Beemo's awkward interruption. The Doctor checked his watch at length before beginning.

"Normally I wouldn't explain something like this until later but I thinks there's time. Right yes sorry, I got distracted. Silly me, anyway in days gone by when I was rocking a different body and the cybermen were less advanced I could've sent a pulse directly to their emotional inhibiter units and cause an overload to stop them."

"Doctor, English please!" Marceline butted in. "We're not all like Bubblegum." He cringed at the memory of his outburst a few minutes ago and wondered how she was doing.

"Ok, ok English I can do that. I don't but I can." This raised a few eyebrows. "When the cybermen butcher themselves, or as they prefer 'upgrade', they remove all of their emotions to stop them feeling anything. The emotional inhibiter is a failsafe device that stops them realizing what they've done."

"Sorry, Doc, but I'm still confused. Why is this inhibiter so important?" Jake asked while frowning. The Doctor looked at Finn who looked back.

"Imagine. Just imagine. Imagine what it must feel like to be trapped inside a cold metal cage for your entire life. Unable to touch or feel anything at all."

_"I don't really have to…" _Marceline looked down at the glassy floor but the Doctor was the only one to notice.

"You would just exist in a state of pure denial about yourself and pretend it isn't so bad because the reality is too terrifying to endure." He raised his hands. "Now normally the cybermen don't feel any of this thanks to the inhibiter but what if it failed? What if all those pent up emotions came flooding back. The fear. The cold. The dark. It would drive you insane and that's what we're going to do."

"What? We're going to make them feel by destroying their inhibiter thingies? That's cold, man!" Jake expressed his evident disapproval to the Doctors plan and Finn joined in.

"Yeah, Doc, what happened to no violence? You said there was always a choice. Isn't there another way?" When Finn had finished the Doctor just sighed. He had given up trying to fix his bowtie.

"Yes. Yes…normally I would. I would try to find another way but what can I do?" He looked around at his audience. "How do you reason with someone who has no concept of wrong? Or compassion? If I were to try to reason with their leader, where ever he is, the conversation would be deemed irrelevant and illogical and I would be deleted on the spot." This last bit caused Jake to go wide eyed while Finn's hand instinctively went to his sword. Although Marceline didn't show anything on the outside she was just as taken aback as the others.

"_Sure I'm bad by other people's standards but that's just evil. I'm not evil, or at least I don't think so." _

"Of course it's not that easy anymore," he continued while turning back to the console to inspect the sleeping Beemo. "Last time I was lucky. The code to lower the emotional inhibiter's barrier was located inside their main computer and all I had to do was use my phone to send it to all the cyber units to cause the overload. Oh how times change…"He looked up at the time rotor.

"When a simple mobile phone could break past all cyber defence systems. Now-a-days there are countless patches in place to stop that kind of transmission. They've upgraded themselves against that sort of attack, hence why I need such a large amount of energy. To break past all their cyber-screens and fixes I need such a tremendous quantity of the stuff my brains going all fuzzy-wuzzy." This drew some looks. "Fuzzy-wuzzy, never saying that again. And of course I actually need a code to send but I've got no idea where their base is. I've been searching for the past half an hour and nothing. They must be cloaked. Hm…" He started to pace up and down the transparent glass floor.

"Well I'm not really a code sorta guy, that's PB's area, but as for energy would heat energy be fine?" Jake said which caused the traveller to interrupt his pacing and spin around so fast he nearly knocked Beemo off the console.

"Yes, brilliant, excellent! Jake you're a genius."

"Aww well I wouldn't say that exactly" He smiled bashfully.

"No really that **is **top notch right there. I was too busy thinking about using electrical energy and how I would generate so much on a planet which doesn't even have cars. But thermal energy…I can't believe I didn't think of it before!" He ran around to the nether side of the hexagonal console which caused his mop of hair to bounce slightly. "We've just got to dig down deep enough to the planet's core and we'll have buckets of the stuff. Jake I could kiss you!

"Dude…maybe next time! No homo, yeah?_"_

"Point taken. Alright I'm going to get some spades to dig with." Before he could do so Marceline interrupted him.

"Doctor, there's really no need for all that. Hard work is waaayyy at the bottom of my list right now. Besides there's a great source of heat right next door." She caught Finn's eye who was vigorously shaking his head at her.

"Oh well that's saved us some bother then. What's it called and where is it?" Finn shook his head even faster than before.

"The fire Kingdom."

* * *

**Plot development for the win! Where princess Bubblegum went will also become important to the story, so fear not PB fans. Thanks once again for you guy's support and feel free to let me know how well (or not well) I'm writing this. Till the next time, PozzyP out!**


	8. Grassland brawl

"Su...surely there's another way. Digging's a lot of fun you know. Heh, heh…"Finn laughed nervously.

"Finn, man up already. It won't be so bad." Jake noticed his brother's edginess.

"Wait what did I mis…oh that's right." The Doctor smacked himself mentally and physically.

"Dude, did you just go and forget that whole convo you had with Finn last night?" Marceline knew she had the upper hand.

"Yes… wait…no! Arrgh we don't have time for this! The cybermen have us in their sights and are trying not only to kill us but turn us into one of them. And you're…bickering?!" Marceline was not easily going to be deterred and pressed on.

"Did it really mean that little to you? You're just like my dad! Were all those things you said about love true? What do you know of love?!" He visibly stiffened and the trio braced themselves for another explosion of rage but he simply smiled instead.

_"Don't rise to it. You can't lose another one of them. Wait, weren't you just saying about how you needed to get rid of them for their own safety? This was a good opportunity and yet you held back. No! They're involved now and I could really use their help. Amy told me to find someone and then four come along at once. Brilliant, no wait, wait, wait you're missing the obvious. Marceline said those things to provoke you. Get a reaction, but why? Is she testing me, evaluating me for something? AAH of course she wants someone to relate to! After 1000 years alone I can't blame her and if she has dad trouble as well then that points even more to a need for understanding and care. Don't you see, she wasn't being mean she was just seeing if I could help! It's all so clear! Whoa I just got side-tracked again with cybermen on the loose. Oh well, I live dangerously not by choice but sometimes it's nice to choose."_

"Love is strange and complex and I don't pretend to be an expert on it by any means but anyone can see that the idea of seeing flame princess again pains you. I'm really sorry." Finn could see that his ancient eyes mirrored what he was saying.

"Really, I am, but Jake's right. You're going to have to go in there and face her. It's either that or 2 million cybermen spread throughout Ooo and destroy it before moving on to the next planet and the next and the one after that. It's not just the planet that's at stake now, it's the universe. If I can't get enough power to trigger their downfall while they're still in range they won't stop here. They'll construct a spaceship and try to convert everyone into hollowed out murderers. Once they're out of the atmosphere then no amount of energy will be able to give me a great enough range to destroy them all. You need to face her or the universe as you know it will cease to exist. Her or the universe."

"Yeah ok, fine, jeez." Finn was slightly peeved at the Doctor's brief monologue. "Fine, I'll go to the stupid fire kingdom. I was going to go there sooner or later but you didn't have to try to guilt me into going. Even I can see that having a ton of machines try to take over the world is a bad idea."

"Brilliant!" The Doctor beamed. "Though technically they're not machines they're hybri…" He caught sight of Marceline's perplexed face and stopped himself before becoming serious once again. "Finn the human. The fate of the universe is in your hands."

"Yeah, no biggy. I save the world on a daily basis anyway so this is basically another day for me. Apart from the cool spaceships and robots."

"Not robots, they're…" He stopped himself again. "Anyway, setting a course for the largest source of thermal energy within a few mile radius which I assume is going to be the fire kingdom."

"Unless Tree-trunks is using her super big pie baking oven again, eh Finn?" Jake said and bumped fists with Finn. The Doctor smiled.

_"I've just told him that the universe hangs in the balance and yet he seems so…carefree? He's got the attitude you once had. He reminds me of me in so many ways. Save the world and be back in time for tea, check. Has a cool hat, check. Forget fezzes I must ask him where to get one of those bear hats. Nope, nope I got side-tracked again. This seems to be occurring more often now. You're getting old, old man. Old and weak._

"Right then you lot next stop fire kingdom! Geronimo!" He flipped a few more switches (some twice just for fun) and fiddled with the hot and cold taps before getting into position to pull down the time lever but the second before he was able to there was an almighty jerk which shook everyone in the TARDIS and knocked them to the (surprisingly cold) glass floor.

"Doctor, is it supposed to do this?!" Yelled Marceline who was struggling to get up, as she could no longer use her levitation to right herself.

"It's the cybermen! They've got us in a gravity spike!" He yelled back. "They're pulling us out of the sky…so assume the position!" The others just looked at him. "Oh right I guess you weren't here when I was making up the standard crash protocols. Makes sense considering they're pretty rece…"

"Doc, is now really the time?!"

"Whoops, sorry, um, just crouch and tuck." He mimicked crouching and tucking his legs in so he resembled an oblong ball shape. Before the others could copy, however, there was another almighty jolt as the ship crashed back down into the grasslands outside the treehouse where it rested with an almighty thud. Smoke was pouring again out of the cracks the craft had sustained.

"Every. Single. Time." The Doctor was the first up. "No matter what I do or where I go there is always, **always, **smoke!" Finn was next to recover.

"…My head. Ow." His bear hat was now darker with smoke damage. "What the crunch did you do, Doc?!"

"It was them, the cybermen I mean. They must have located us and fired a localized gravity canon to bring us back down. The only thing we had on our side was height but now the playing fields' even…" Now there's nothing to stop them trying to stop us from stopping them. Lots of 'stops' I know but point standing. We need to get out of here right now."

"What, why? We're safer in here, right. Right?" Although as Ooo's hero he had to remain stoic of face for the people, inside Finn was more scared then he had ever been. The Doctor shook his head and looked over and Jake and Marceline who were now recovering.

"That pulse took down all the defences and right now…" He looked at the door at the far end. "That wooden door is just wood. If we don't go out they'll get in and believe me that's the last thing we want right now."

"This stupid, old fuzz box can't even protect us from that gravity thing and yet you still think it's valuable?! What's with you?" Marceline said, irritated.

"It travels in ti…it's just very important, ok? _Phew close save there. _Right this is it my companions…when we step out of those doors we'll be completely surrounded. Don't resist, don't talk, don't anything. If we play this right we can try to get to their leader."

"Wait, dude." It was Jake's turn to object. "You said they'd just delete us or what not if we went with them. I have a girlfriend and kid's you know."

"Don't be silly Jake 'cos that's not the plan."

"There's a plan? Yeah, right." Marceline snorted.

'Yep, the plan. When we get to the base we'll create a diversion and escape into their base."

"Wait, why do we escape _into _the base? Why don't we make a break for it?" Finn asked.

"Trust me on this. I'm willing to bet my hat, if I had a hat or were a betting man, that the encryption key for the emotional inhibiter chips is in the main computer. We find that and then we escape. Not necessarily in that order though, actually yes in that order. I'm not used to doing things in the right order." He smiled. "Right stay focused and don't object to them. Lead the way, Jakey boy. Jake gave him a playful look. They all turned to leave the slowly clouding TARDIS but although Finn was uneasy for obvious reasons he still couldn't help but feel they had forgotten something.

_"Come on you've done worse than this. Remember when you accidently disturbed that colony of hug wolves. This can't be worse. No of course not so why do I still feel this way? Like I've forgotten something. Someone… _Oh my Glob princess Bubblegum's still on-board!" Finn shouted to the others who rapidly tried to process the new information. "What if she's hurt, or unconscious? We need to go back for her." He turned to leave but was stopped by the Doctor grabbing on to his arm.

"Finn, trust me when I say she's got a much better chance of survival in here then we do out there."

"What are you kidding me?! This thing crashed for Glob's sake! And there's all this smoke around here too. How can you say she's safe?" His eyes filled with tears but from the smoke and not from anything else (at least he hoped).

"This is about as safe as it gets around me and the less the cybermen know the better. If they find out that she's still alive then we really have lost her but as long as she's hidden then she's as safe as she'll ever be. Trust me." Although the Doctor's logic was flawed, Finn could see he believed in what he was saying and somehow knew he could trust him. Marceline also opened her fanged mouth to object but shut it again after seeing Finn's resolution crumble.

_"I may not trust him, but I can definitely count on Finn. If he trusts him then I guess I can as well." _Taking one last look around the Capsule they reached the door, single file, and stepped out. It took a while for their eyes to adjust to the light and for Marceline to expand her umbrella which she seemed to have pulled from nowhere.

"Uh, Doctor?" Jake spoke aloud. "Where are all the cybermen?"

* * *

He was right. For as far as the eye could see there was nothing. At least nothing out of the ordinary as there were of course the usual denizens of the grasslands such as some squirrels and frogs and a lone snail who were all playing happily by a pool without a care in the world.

"I…I don't understand. Where are they all? It makes no sense. They should easily have had us by now. Hmm…" The Doctor scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"Maybe there all going to jump out from behind us and shout 'Boo', heh heh!"

"Jake, this is serious," Finn said sounding annoyed, but checked behind himself just to be sure. "Doctor you said we'd be surrounded so…where are they exactly?" The Doctor's face was just as puzzled as Finn's.

"Good question indeed. Maybe they're low on power. Nah, that gravity spike must have taken loads of energy to fire so it can't be that. The more I find out the less sense it makes. Strange." His train of thought was derailed by Marceline's voice.

"Uh…what's that?" Not having vampire vision, the other's struggled to see what her slender finger was pointing at. All that was there was the nearly endless expanse of the grasslands and the heat of the sun that was now directly above them. Then, suddenly they saw it. A silver blur on the landscape, moving at speeds incomprehensible to the naked eye. Although it was at least a few kilometres away at least it streaked across the plains at a lightning quick pace and was approaching rapidly.

"They're coming." The Doctor's statement was a simple one but it served to shatter the air of unease around the small band and, instead, replaced it with an unspoken call to action. Jake morphed himself into a much larger version of himself while Finn drew out his blade. Marceline used her umbrella-less hand to also draw her own weapon that gave the appearance of both medieval battle axe and also a stylized bass guitar. _"Where in the world did she get that from? Are her pockets bigger on the inside like mine or is hammer space a real thing here?_ _If we survive this I'll ask her."_

The silvery blur had been, by this point, joined by two others which helped to heighten the contrast between metal and grass. They were almost zig-zagging across the plains but were now only about a few hundred metres away. Even at this distance the Doctor could see something was wrong. The blurs were shimmering intermittently and lost speed every time they did. In the gaps where they were no longer moving at supersonic speed he could see they were damaged.

The 2nd one had anterior steel plating on its left arm missing and a deep gash could been seen above its lifeless, hollow eye while the third had both of its shin plates missing. The leader was the worst of, having nearly lost his right arm completely which was only connected by two thin wires. Never the less they continued forward towards them and when they were only a couple of metres away they stopped. It took Finn a moment to take in the appearance of the closest things he had to real humans. They were just over 6ft tall and were covered head to toe (save for the damage) in a metallic armour. Their heads had some sort of thin tube running around the outside to the top, almost like handles. Their eyes, or lack of, is what startled him the most, however. Where they should have been was just two holes that were filled with darkness. Completely empty of any human emotion…

_"Snap out of it, Finn! They're not like you anymore. They've removed everything you once were and won't hesitate to kill you." _Finn internally thanked his voice of reason and resumed his battle stance. He dropped it again when he realized they weren't attacking him. Or anyone for that matter. They just stood there, like they were waiting for orders. Marceline had been getting more and more annoyed at their silence so broke it herself.

"What are you waiting for you metal freaks!? We don't have all day!" She shouted at the impassive figures.

"UPGRADE IN PROGRESS."

"Marceline, don't!" The Doctor yelled. It was too late and it was if a switch had been flipped. The three metal figures placed their fists on their chests and extended them out which seemed to cause a hidden panel to extend out of their arms.

"Everybody duck!" The Doctor shouted as, from within the newly created gaps in their arms, there were guns. They fired in unison at their targets and if it hadn't been for the Doctors warning they would have been hit by the deadly blue projectiles. When the smoke cleared from the discharge there was no one to be seen. The cybermen had no concept of uneasiness or surprise and instead moved around to scan for their targets. They moved closer to the TARDIS and tried to blast it open but were unsuccessful in their attempt.

"Don't you touch her!" The leader's head swivelled around independent of its body and located the origin of the voice. It was the Doctor who had been hiding behind one of the many hills the grassland had to offer.

"DELETE." The cyberman with its left leg's armour missing turned to take care of their enemy but halted when the Doctor yelled:

"Now guys!" A whistling could be heard above the cyber group and they looked up just in time to see Finn swing his sword at the nearest humanoid. Although it bounced off the steel harmlessly, the impact caused it to stumble backwards into its companions which subsequently unceremoniously toppled over. Before they could recover, however, an invisible force lifted the one with the eye gash into the air and was then struck hard from a number of different angles by Marceline.

Back on the ground, Jake was trying to squash the remaining two with his enlarged fists but that was proving far more difficult than anticipated. Although they were both lying on the floor when he first tried to make contact they simply blurred and made him hit the air. For Jake it was like trying to hit ants as the two moved around him at lightning speed and although he was wildly swinging his fists at them he could never seem to touch them; they were just too fast.

Finn noticed this and, anticipating the leader to run around Jakes left leg when he swung his tail around, he charged at the spot where he thought he could intercept and was rewarded with a sharp 'clang' as his metal blade contacted the steel. His interest in the giant yellow canine now lost, the leader turned to face Finn who readied another barrage of slashes against his foe. He tried a 'left, left, down, right' combo but was both astounded and scared when his metal counterpart parried each and every one of his strikes with a block from its arms. He tried again but no matter how fast or varied he tried to attack, the cyberman's arms seemed to distort and blur and halt his advances like it was always one step ahead.

_"This is bad! I can't last much longer against this thing. I'm already panting but it hasn't even broken a sweat. Can it even break sweat? I hope Marceline's doing better than I am." _He tried to kick his opponent away to see how his friends were doing but the metal man seemed to shimmy to one side and struck him in the side of the head with its steel clad fist. Stars exploded in front of his eyes and Finn knew he was going to lose the battle. The cyber-leader raised his forearm and brought it down once again but Finn managed to weakly raise his sword to counter but was knocked to the ground by the force and was rewarded with a tingly, numbing sensation in his arm.

_What the…? What's with my arm!? I can't feel it." _He looked up at the towering figure and noticed a crackle of electricity shrouding its fists. _"Arrgh! Its stupid arms are electrified! The longer I spend fighting it the weaker I get. The Doctor better have an escape plan lined up…" _

Meanwhile…

_"Come on think! What have we got? Come on, brain, you and me together, eh? Even in their weakened state we're still completely outmatched by them cybermen so what can we do to stop them? Think!" _The Doctor observed the scene from his vantage point in front of the TARDIS. He saw Jake helplessly trying to swat away the silver tornado that was assaulting his legs, but his yellow hide was beginning to show signs of strain.

Marceline was faring no better as, even though she could turn invisible, the cyber operating system allowed the cyberman to detect minimal shifts in air currents so was always able to predict the vampire queen's lacerations while countering with its own energy bolts that were starting to melt the her defences. Finn was also in trouble as his own cyberman was out-manoeuvring the swordsman and hitting home at an alarming rate.

_"I've got to stop them moving so fast otherwise they'll definitely kill us before long. But to calculate the relative wavelength and frequency of a sonic pulse to shut down their mechani…"_

"Doctor, a little help here!" Screamed Marceline as her cyberman shot a wave of electricity through her axe bass, causing her to drop it in pain. "I can't last much longer up here!"

_"Um, well, ok, well…"_

Doc, they're too fast for me!" Jake yelled over to him. "Sorry, man, but I think I'm a gonner." He collapsed on the ground and shrank back down to his regular size before being stomped in the gut by a metal foot.

_"Um, I can't really…" _He clutched his head, desperately trying to form a plan.

"Doctor…help us!" Finn was done on one knee and desperately trying to bat away the incoming strikes of his opponent with his own, but has gradually being electrocuted by the repeated contact.

_"I…I don't know what to do. New feeling! No, bad feeling, I can't help them." _He looked frantically around for something, anything that would help.

"Doctor, we've got seconds! Think of something!" Finn had lost his sword and had a gun pointed straight at his head, while Jake was feebly trying to push his advancing cyberman away who also had its gun drawn out. Marceline had taken a blow to the head and was out cold on the downtrodden grass, slowly burning in the sunlight while the remaining cyberman readied its own gun to her wretched figure.

_"I'm sorry…I-I can't stop them. I can't, there isn't enough time." _He fiddled helplessly with his sonic in the hope of calculating the resonance pattern in their Cyberian steel bodies to disintegrate them but it was far too late.

"YOU HAVE FAILED DOCTOR. YOU ARE STILL OF USE TO US BUT YOUR ASSCOCIATES WILL PERISH." The leader spoke but its mouthpiece only flickered intermittently due to the damage it had sustained. "THEY HAVE PROVEN THEMSELVES TO BE INCOMPATTIBLE BY RESISTING US AND WILL THEREFORE BE DELETED. DELETE!"

The first raised his arm pulse to Marceline's head. "DELETE!" The second pressed his splayed hand against the canine's yellow flesh. "DELETE!" The third and final cyberman lowered his gun to where the back of Finn's neck lay on the ground. "DELE…" Whoosh! The doors of the TARDIS were flung open and a massive wall of smoke billowed out. From behind the cloud several cylindrical projectiles flew out and immediately sought out the three metallic beings. They proceeded to attach themselves to the units, but for a scary moment nothing happened. The Doctor could only look on in amazement as the leader turned to face the shadowy figure who had appeared behind the wall of smoke.

"YOU WILL BE DEL…" He got no further in his statement as he, along with his two cohorts, collapsed onto their knees as a brutal surge of electricity coursed through their bodies.

"No. Not here. Not ever, ever again." The voice was vaguely familiar but the Doctor couldn't work out who it was from behind the smoke screen. "You make me sick and now you will feel science's true power."

The figure raised a device and turned the dial that was dead centre. The current increased and the cybermen were overwhelmed with power, causing them to fall like flies. The dial was mercilessly turned up and the energy became so great the Doctor had to shield his eyes from the brightness while the cybermen could only howl out an inhuman scream of pain as their systems were overloaded and circuits fried.

"YOU…WILL…BE…DE" The leader's final words were cut short as his head suddenly exploded from the sheer discharge flowing through it. The explosion brought Finn and Jake to their senses, who then quickly covered Marceline's badly charred body from the sun's rays. The Doctor walked forward, now clear from the danger of cybermen, towards his TARDIS, and his saviour.

"Who…? Who are you?" He asked tentatively.

"Have you already forgotten? I have been traveling with you for the past day or so. Extractor fans on." Gone was the rock band shirt and tracksuit bottoms. Instead the figure was clad in a bright pink cross between a lab coat and a trench coat that was buttoned at the middle and wore purple combat boots that reached up to her knees. Over her shoulders was another, lighter cloak of sorts but it didn't serve to hide her identity. The Doctor did a double take while Finn and Jake's mouths formed an 'O' shape as standing before them holding a dial and her sonic candycane was none other than the candy princess herself, princess Bubblegum.

* * *

**Princess Bubblegum saves the day! (and not for the last time either). For anyone who's interested I've done an artwork on deviantart of PB's sonic candycane at:**

** art/Sonic-screwdriver-Candy-cane-version-466854292**

**Anyways thanks you great people for reading this story and for your continued support. This was my first time writing a big action scene so feel free to leave comments on what was (or wasn't) good. Till the next time, PozzyP out!**

**UPDATE: I just released an artwork depicting the outfit princess Bubblegum wears when saving the Doctor and co. from the cybermen in this chapter . Feel free to check it out at:**

** art/Princess-Bubblegum-s-new-combat-outfit-468271772**


	9. Rule 1

There were several tense seconds of silence before Finn, who was still shielding Marceline's body from the sun with his own, burst out:

"That. Was. AWESOME. What the glob did you do, PB!?"

"Oh I just fired an electromagnetic pulse through their systems using these remote transmitters." She held up a spare one of the cylindrical projectiles.

"Do you just carry those around with you or what?" Jake asked from his sitting position.

"A true leader should be ready for any situation." She frowned. "And besides I've had a few too many attempts on my life in recent years so now I always carry the essentials around with me."

"What and that includes crazy science guns and stuff, which just so happens to be useful in the current situation and very effective against an enemy which you've never encountered and shouldn't even have heard about." Jake narrowed his eyes. "You weren't there when the Doc was explaining about the cybermen so how come you knew?"

"Well, er, put simply I was spying on you." She said sheepishly.

"Princess, I thought you were better than that." Finn expressed. "How un-pro of you."

"Gah, Finn!" She put her hands on her hips and conveyed her annoyance. "No, Finn, what was un-pro of me was storming out on all of you back there." She glanced over to the Doctor who just stood scratching his chin. "I know my research was important in saving lives but if I die then I definitely can't help people. I was blinded by rage and missed the obvious and I can only ask for you to forgive me. Can you find it in yourself?"

"Of course, Prubbs, I understand totally." Finn said, but Bubblegum severely doubted he actually understood what had happened but brushed it off whilst turning to face the Timelord.

"Doctor, I know I acted irrationally but I also know you were just trying to keep me from harm. Can you forgive me?" He nodded silently with a pensive look on his face. "Actually while we're on the topic you shouldn't feel obligated to try to save my life. I can take care of myself you know. Ruling the candy kingdom has taught me a lot of things about survival." He remained silent. She turned her pretty pink face over to Jake who was now sunbathing. "What about you, Jake?" He seemed unconvinced at her reconciliation and sudden appearance.

"Yeah, what ev's apology accepted." He said begrudgingly. "But what I don't get is how you knew about the cybermen and knew the exact moment to come out and save us."

"I already told you, silly, I spied on you." She giggled.

"Yeah but how? With what?" Jake remained wary of her until she pulled out a metallic looking candy cane, which just confused him even more. "What the junk is that, PB?"

"Sonic candycane." She noticed for the briefest of seconds that the Doctor had smiled but he immediately went back to his pensive state. "I used it to remotely activate BMO's camera function so I could watch what you were saying. I figured I might be missing important details but I couldn't bring myself to back in with you so I listened in from the next room. I heard what the Doctor said about the cybermen being part machines so I brought my EMPs just in case." Jake was still keeping up a façade of wariness but couldn't stay mad at the candy monarch. "When the whole ship rocked and we crashed I figured you might need sciencey back up so I went to the main control room and watched what you were doing on the scanners. Nice sword work by the way, Finn." He blushed at this. "When you started to get beat up I sprang into action and saved you all which reminds me, don't I get a thank you?" She smiled innocently. Jake's suspicions melted once more.

"Aww, PB how can I thank you enough for saving me and my little bro?"

"Jake! Um, thanks Peebles. You really came through for us." Finn said with real gratitude which the princess felt slightly guilty for as she often took his own services for granted. Apparently not noticing Marceline on the floor underneath Finn, she turned to the Doctor to hear his appraisal of her science based saving skills.

"Doctor?" She ventured.

"We got lucky." He said while still keeping up his thoughtful chin scratching.

"WHAT?" The group (minus Marceline) shouted.

"They should have got us easily but why send only 3 units? Out here on the open plains we should have been overpowered in seconds but why only 3…are they that damaged that they only have 3 fully functioning cybermen, and these weren't even fully functioning." He turned to speak to Bubblegum. "Sorry I really appreciate the saving, that's great and usually my job so it's a nice change." Her cheeks reddened at this. "But if those cybermen had been fully operational then those EMPs would have been as useless as hitting them with a small to medium sized dandelion. Strange analogy but point standing."

"Doctor, nothing that contains any kind of circuitry could survive a pulse like that and especially at this range." She indicated a metre with her pink palmed hands.

"See with the cybermen it's not so easy. There not just circuits and wires they're alive as well. The organic part of their brain can shrug off something like that." He threw his head back up at the sky and sighed.

"But shouldn't the EMP at least fry their machine parts. That was over 4 million kilowatts of power, Doctor. Nothing can withstand that, not even living brains." She pressed him.

"In theory no, but in practice the cybermen have this sort of field connecting them all together that prevents this."

"So like an instantaneous community pathweb communication system, right?" She asked. Finn and Jake had forgotten that she could use words like that when she was being all sciency.

"Princess, you lost me at instant…er what was it again?" Finn's brain was struggling with all of the complicated vocabulary she had just spoken and was therefore relieved to hear the Doctor offer a (slightly) less complex version.

"She means they share a hive mind"

"What as in, like, bees?" Jake butted in.

"No as in they all think and know exactly the same things at the same time."

"So just like LSP and all of her lumpy space friends? Ha ha ha," Laughed Finn and Jake together and the princess couldn't help but join in. The Doctor was now annoyed on top of confused.

"Team? Crew, there are cybermen out here READY TO TAKE OVER THE UNIVERSE! And what's an 'LSP' anyway? Gang?"

"Sorry, Doctor, please continue," Bubblegum said while wiping a sugary tear from her eye. He waited for the rest of gang to recover from the inside joke before he continued.

"Yes well then…the hive mind means that they're essentially uniform, as in no differences between them. However, that on its own isn't what gives them such a resistance to energy weapons and EMPs." He went on earnestly. "Their outer layer of steel is coated in an incredibly thin layer of cyberian nano-matrix type circuitry, which basically means the exact second it receives an energy pulse of any kind that deviates from the normal environment, it compensates and rewrites itself into a form that can resist that kind of weapon. It's not exactly solid lightanium but it does the job just as well. Anyway, put simply…" He was cut off by princess Bubblegum who had worked it out for herself.

"They can change their armour to resist anything it comes into contact with, and because they're all linked by a collective field, the data for the patch is transmitted instantaneously through cyberspace to all other units within range which I'm assuming means once one of them has the upgrade, they all do. Am I right, Doctor?"

"Couldn't have put it better myself, Bonnie." He smiled warmly. "Well maybe with more arm waving and a fez but your version was fine too." Jake noticed a moment pass between the two.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa if you two want some time alone we can just…" The two sprang apart at this.

"Um, no we were just…" Bubblegum started.

"Yeah we, errr…anyway we were just saying that we got lucky because the cybermen we encountered were damaged and their matrixes weren't functioning so well and couldn't upgrade properly to combat the EMP we used. Next time it won't be so easy."

"Man, that wasn't easy that was hard as nuts." Finn said, readjusting his bear hat. "And what next time? We defeated them, right?"

"Hmm I don't think that was all of them. The energy needed to fire the gravity canon that brought use down in the first place must have been colossal but if they had that much power in the first place then why not re-activate more cybermen and take us out while they had the chance?"

"Maybe they ran out of power after using the cannon thing?" Finn volunteered.

"Possible but unlikely. For a species practically based around logic it makes no sense. If they only had enough power for either, then the more sensible option would be to revive as many units as possible then just wait for us to land manually and then take us out. It makes no sense." He pulled his hair in frustration.

"Maybe they just got bored of waiting and decided to make us come to them."

"Have you been listening to anything, Jake?" Bubblegum scolded him. "The cybermen don't have any emotions and so don't feel boredom. Furthermore it would just be…" She stopped herself as she suddenly realised they were one person short. She caught sight of Marceline lying underneath Finn's body. "Marceline no!" She screamed.

_"I thought they were just rivals or something but maybe Peebles really does care for Marcy. I wonder…what do you think Jake? Jake?"_ Finn looked over but the yellow bulldog was watching the clouds go by overhead. _"Oh yeah we're not in the TARDIS anymore. _Don't worry PB she's safe, just sleeping." He directed his voice over to where the princess would have been if she hadn't covered the distance between the TARDIS and his person in the time he was thinking to himself.

He was momentarily startled by the princess's sudden compassion for the vampire queen and again wondered if their relationship was all they made it out to be. "Yeah, um, she's just sleeping at the minute. I think the Doc bursting in on us last night disrupted her sleep pattern and the fighting just now completely cooked her goose. She'll be fine, though."

"Oh…I thought she was…never mind." She replaced her concerned look with a cheery smile. "Right, Doctor, what's our next move?"

"I guess this means I'll have to speak to flame princess." Finn sighed.

"Well actually…no." The Doctor sprang into action and began wiping the blast marks off the TARDIS's exterior with his jacket.

"Wait what?" Finn was surprised but also secretly relieved. "What about asking her to let you collect some of their heat power to use for your cyber smashing device thingy?"

"Oh yeah in the long run you'll have to." Finn's face fell at this. "We all will, together, but right now I've got a little detour planned that'll solve this mystery once and for all. Finn, Jake do you trust me?" They both nodded. "Princess, do you trust me?"

"Yes, Doctor. With all of my heart." She looked over at his enigmatic figure.

"Good and I trust you all with both of mine." Finn and Jake exchanged looks and Bubblegum started slightly but he continued regardless. "What I'm about to show you isn't a projection, or an image or a dream. It will be real as day so I need you to trust me and to be strong for me." He finished wiping the black off the doors and turned to face them.

"Doctor, what do you mean? What are you going to show us?" Bubblegum asked.

"Bonnie, you know when I said to live in the moment?" He answered her question with another question.

"Of course."

"Sorry." He smiled at her. "But I lied."

"What!?"

"I'm a hypocrite. Have been all my lives but point standing. Living in the moment gets a bit boring, see? I've got a real working time machine and now we're going to use it to travel back in time to see what happened the moment the cybermen crashed." He smiled even more at the shocked silence of his companions. He loved them trying to wrap their heads around the idea of it. He was slightly taken aback that princess Bubblegum wasn't as impressed as he would have thought. Jake noticed this and remarked:

"Princess, don't act like you're a know it all on this sort of thing. That thing you made wasn't time travel at all and you know it." Bubblegum whirled on him.

"Seriously, Jake! For all purposes what I invented was time travel." She huffed.

"Wait so on a planet which doesn't appear to use the steam engine or cars to move around you've actually invented a way to time travel. Talk about running before you can walk." He laughed at his own joke, then became serious again. He pointed at Jake. "What do you mean it wasn't time travel? It either is or it isn't so enlighten me. Which is it?"

"Basically the princess has this orb thing and these gloves that…" Jake was interrupted hastily by the princess herself.

"…I can log the temporal and spatial co-ordinates of a person's whereabouts anywhere along their established timelines and send them back along to replace their past selves and live through past events again." She explained. "For all purposes it is time travel." Her bravado was cut short by the Doctor's disapproving look.

"I thought vortex manipulators were bad but what you've got princess isn't even close to real time travel." If it was possible for him to become even more serious than before he certainly managed it. "Sending someone back along previously established events is one thing but replacing them entirely. That's just…improper. Except for pulling cheap pranks but aside from that it's bad. Got it?" She opened her mouth to say something but slowly shut it after realising he was right.

"Don't look so down, Bonnie." He said, noticing her defeated atmosphere. "Time travel isn't easy to achieve, let alone perfect. Heck, it even takes me a few tries to get to where I want these days and I've been going since the very beginning. You're not a bad scientist. You're actually one of the most brilliant minds I've ever encountered so just go with me on this." Her face rose once again at his compliment. "Right enough chit-chat you lot." He snapped his fingers and the doors of the TARDIS sprang open and bathed the group in a gentle glow.' He turned to Finn and Jake. "Take Marceline and sit her down in one of the passenger seats. It doesn't matter which one just go."

They obliged and carried her sleeping body (which Finn thought to be surprisingly light) through the double doors and into the control room. Now alone with Bubblegum, the Doctor said:

"Are you sure you want to do this? You may not like what you see…" His eyes bored into hers.

"Doctor, I think I'll be fine. It's just a celestial crash; it's not like I've never watched anything fall from the sky before. Why would I be scared?" His gaze shifted uneasily.

"If you're going to travel with me you might as well know what you're signing up for. Rule 1, the Doctor lies." With this he turned on his heel and followed Jake into the TARDIS. Bubblegum was slightly thrown off by his remark about lying but remembered him saying back in her lab that he only did it to protect people.

_'It still doesn't make sense though. Why would he lie about where we're going to in the TARDIS unless…the truth was too painful to tell?" _She recalled his words back in the lab. _"I wouldn't need people to trust me so much if always told them the truth. Of course it's always for their own safety…" _His words sunk in. She recalled his expression just now. Rule 1. All of the pieces fell into place. _"He has a time machine…he wouldn't tell me the real destination because if we had been told beforehand he thought it would prevent us from going, out of fear." He isn't just taking us back to when the cybermen arrived…he's taking us back to…" _Her eye's widened as the realisation hit her like a ton of bricks.

"Stop, Doctor, you can't!" She ran inside. "They're not ready yet!" It was too late, however, as the second she stepped in from the outside, the doors shut of their own accord and the time rotor began to rise and fall. She ran past Finn and Jake, who were oblivious to where they were being taken, and up the stairs to where the Doctor was standing. "No! We can't watch it, not ever!"

"I'm sorry. I am so, so sorry." His expression was pained. "…but this is something I have to see and I think it's about time you knew the truth. All of you."

"Wait what?" Finn asked, with a confused look on his face.

"Doc, what's going on?" Jake said, while looking equally confused. Princess Bubblegum opened her mouth to answer on the Doctor's behalf but was interrupted by Marceline coming around to her senses.

"Mmm…that was a cool nap. Refreshing." She got up out of the chair. "So, what did I miss?" Her eyes fell upon Bubblegum's features that were frozen in horror. "Whoa did I miss something? What's going on? Where are we going?" She addressed the group but only Bubblegum answered.

"I…I'm sorry I tried to stop him." Tears ran down her face. "But it's too late."

"We're here."

"Here? Where's here?" This time it wasn't just Marceline that answered as Finn and Jake were just as in the dark as she was about their location. The Doctor spoke up at length.

"I'm sorry. Really from the bottom of my hearts I am so, so sorry. I knew if I told you where we were going you would have tried to stop me but you need to know. You deserve to know what happened."

"Doc, you're not making sense. I thought we were trying to see the cyber crash?"

"We've gone a lot further back than that, believe me. We're nearly 1000 years in your past."

"But that would mean…" Marceline froze in dread. "No", she whispered softly.

"Why, Doctor? Why are you making us watch this?" Bubblegum half whispered, half pleaded.

"Doc, I still don't get it…what are we watching?" Jake asked. In response the Doctor snapped his fingers which caused the doors of the TARDIS to swing open once more. They were in space. All around them there was the inky blackness which was dotted with sparkles of light from distant stars.

"I'm so sorry." The TARDIS leant forward and a spherical blue planet could be seen below. "Planet Earth, 1007 years in the past to this day. The group watched in fascinated horror as the surface below seemed to explode with the force of a super volcano.

In just a fraction of a second the continents of brown and green were painted red with fire and destruction and although there was no air in space for the shock waves to be felt, the aftermath of the blast was clear as day. In the North West a crater the size of North America had appeared and the latter had vanished completely. Gone were the thriving oceans of blue and life and instead it had turned a sickly green colour which was spreading across the surface like wildfire.

"1000 years ago…"Finn whispered, barely audible.

"Welcome to the Great Mushroom war."

* * *

**And thus ends the 9th chapter! Did you see this coming? I knew as soon as I got the idea for the crossover that with time travel that they were going to have to finally come to terms with the mushroom war (spoiler, it's what's going to happen later on). If anyone gets he reference to the 'Lightanium' mentioned then you deserve a smiley face. Seriously.**

**Also 10 reviews, yay! I can't thank you guys enough for your continued support with this and it really does help me to better the development of this. Anyway, until the next time, PozzyP out.**


	10. History lesson

"Finn get away from the door NOW!" Yelled princess Bubblegum but her cries fell on deaf ears. "Marcy! Jake! You've got to get back." They too didn't respond, even when she tried to drag them away. "Guys please! You don't have to do this to yourselves, you don't have to watch…,"she trailed off as Finn turned to her. His face was completely blank, devoid of all emotion.

"Princess, it's cool. Really, we can do it, right guys?" Jake and Marceline didn't turn from the scene below but nodded in agreement.

"WHAT?! How can you say that?" She yelled to their backs. "How can you be ok with watching the extinction and mass genocide of nearly everything on our planet?! Doctor get rid of it! Doctor!?" She felt a hand on her shoulder and looking round she could see it was his.

"Why're you doing this to us?" Her voice quietened down. "What possible reason could you have for showing us this?" He gestured with his head for her to look back down but she refused and closed her eyes. "I…I can't look…not ever…"

"Princess, look!" It wasn't the Doctor who had spoken but she instead heard the voice of Finn talking to her. She still couldn't bring herself to turn back.

"PB it's fine, it's good." Jake said but still didn't turn around. Her will started to crack.

"Bonnie…it's alright you can do it." Her resolve cracked even more as Marceline spoke.

"Princess…if you have ever trusted me…then listen to your friends. See what's happening to your planet now." She opened her eyes to see the Doctor's own looking straight back at her. She finally caved and braced herself for the landscape of nightmares and destruction as she turned around. To her utter surprise the pools of green and barren landscape were changing, recovering almost.

The acid pools and nuclear waste dumps were fading and being replaced with a plethora of plant life. Though the plants had started off green themselves over the course of the next minute the group saw them split up and evolve into many different hues and shapes. Some became tall and yellow while others spread out like bushes and took on a more pinkish hue.

Out of the ravaged cities with their collapsed skyscrapers and uprooted road systems came many new environments, each with their own unique attractions. To the north and to the west of the nearest continent, an icy mountain range sprang up which caught the light and subsequently made them appear to shimmer and dance. To the south there were many different areas which consisted of foodstuffs, jungle, slime, wild berries, turtles, and raggedy patchwork, to name just a few. It was the most beautiful sight any of them had ever seen, but nature hadn't quite finished yet.

They turned back to the centre of the landmass which was now comprised of a pink, gooey solid, which Bubblegum knew would eventually become the candy kingdom she ruled to this day. The buildings of yellow bricks and strawberry lakes were accompanied by, what looked like, pink and purple trees of cotton candy. Spiralling silver colonnades and pillars of sugar adorned the roads.

Out of the self-initiated destruction of a great civilisation known as 'humanity' had come life. What had originally been a terrible waste of life had bloomed into hope and future and the finally princess Bubblegum understood what the Doctor had showed her. As if he could hear her thoughts (and in the TARDIS it was completely possible he had) he addressed her, and his other companions.

"When you first mentioned the war to me I could see how scared you were." He spoke with a passion that Bubblegum had never heard at any of Ooo's royalty gatherings. "Your fear had consumed you and had become something that you didn't dare talk about in case it happened again." He pointed down to the planet below where the new species were living in harmony with one and other.

"You see? Although a great atrocity had been committed and it seemed all hope was lost, life found a way to preserve itself. In your darkest hour you thought there was no hope for anything but there was, and there always is. You don't need to be afraid of the past because that doesn't change who you are today. It doesn't govern you. Just because your predecessors made a wrong turn it doesn't mean you will. I mean look, you've created all of this! Not out of fear but of trust for each other and hope for the future. There is always hope; you don't need to be scared anymore." There was several seconds of silence as his words sank in and they continued to watch the evolution of the planet below. Jake was the one to speak first.

"Y'know, I always thought about what happened all those years back and wondered if my kids would have to deal with that kind of thing in the future. I wanted to talk about it to you guys but was always too scared you'd call me out for it." Finn turned to his brother.

"I did too, but I guess I was just too scared that if we talked about it, it would increase our chances of making the same mistakes. I'm sorry bro."

"Dude, I'm sorry too." The two hugged again.

"I guess as a ruler it was my duty to learn about the war so I could educate my people on where we could improve, and not make the mistakes we had before but I was scared that everyone else was afraid of the subject and would take my meanings the wrong way." Bubblegum sighed. "I suppose now it doesn't really matter as all my candy subjects have been converted into cybermen."

"Well not necessarily…"Bubblegum turned to the Doctor at his minor revelation.

"How do you mean? You said yourself that they were all gone." She eyed him cautiously.

"What I said before was wrong. I was blinded by my own stupidity and rage after the lab incident and I'm sorry for that."

"Apology accepted. Besides it was just as much my fault as yours." He smiled and this. "…but what do you mean about the candy people? Are they still alive?" He scratched his head and walked back up the stairs to the console.

"It's hard to tell. To my knowledge current cyber units can only convert human or incredibly similar forms of life into their kind. That's why I'm safe for now as my physiology is too different to be compatible with their systems and I think you're safe too. I saw some basic notes on candy people's biology in one of your other laptops and I can safely say that while some are basic humanoids life, such as yourself, I think the differences are enough to prevent an upgrade." He waved his arms up all whimsical like.

"And that's not even including the non-humanoid candy people structures. I know in the future the cybermen will be able to upgrade themselves to process other organisms but that's hundreds and hundreds of years in the future. We're safe for now. I think." He paused for breath.

"Well Doc, me and Jake walked through the candy kingdom lots of times before you arrived and never saw nobody so where'd they all go if the cybermen didn't get them?"

"I don't know, Finn, but now we're going to find out." He started flipping levers and tapping the buttons he was near to. "Our original destination was the point at which the cybermen entered your universe and where they crashed before we took this detour but now that's out of the way we can go!"

"Actually…Doctor…can I just have a few more minutes?" While all of the others had been facing the Doctor to engage him in conversation, Marceline had stayed by the open door to continue watching the surface with a faraway expression.

"Sure, just tell me when." He smiled and returned to facing the drop down screen. Jake and Finn knew that Marceline should be going through some pretty heavy stuff after not only having to actually live through the great mushroom war, but then re-watch it as a passive observer. They decided to keep out of her way as they knew she could be unpredictable when she was sad but Bubblegum felt strangely compelled to join her, and did so by the door.

"I'm sorry, Marcy." She said when she reached her. "These were your people."

"Not anymore" She said, scowling. "I lost my human part when I became a vampire. That's actually why I became a vampire in the first place."

"Wait what?" Bubblegum shrank back.

"Yeah. I was so scared that because it was humans who had caused the fighting and that, although I was part demon, I was also half human at the time and thought that if I stayed human I would end up destroying things as well. I took the first chance I had to get rid of my human part and it happened to be when I got mixed up with this vampire guy. I don't remember his name but I got him to bite me and drain me of my humanity so I wouldn't be compelled to start wars or anything. Maybe I overreacted." Bubblegum put a comforting arm around her to which she tried to instinctively recoil away from but soon let pass.

"No, I can understand. You were alone in a living nightmare and did what you thought was right to stop it from happening again. I forgive you."

"Bonnie…I don't need your forgiveness. It isn't for you to judge how and what I do is wrong and right." Sensing another argument coming along Finn decided to quickly step in, lest one of them pushed the other down to the newly developing planet below.

"Yo Doc, can we see that super awesome space crash now?" He asked hurriedly as the pink princess and the vampire queen traded smouldering looks.

"One super awesome space crash coming up!" He grinned and started winding a lever one the side of the console forwards. "Ok I've taken us to about a year before I arrived. You girls tell me what you see happening out there." He continued winding the lever but stopped when he didn't get an answer. He looked up to see Finn and Jake backing slowly away from the scene that was happening by the TARDIS doors. Princess Bubblegum was breathing deeply while Marceline was smirking.

"Come on you two we've only got one shot at this. One shot to find out what happened the cybermen. One shot to find out how that wormhole was created."

"Can't you just stop time or something while me and 'miss perfect' duke this out?" Marceline asked sarcastically.

"Are you joking?! That's not how time travel works at all! It's all wibbly and wobbly and timey-wimey and not just press a few buttons to stop time. I just travel through it, I don't **control **it."

"Whatever, you can just take us back in time so we can see the crash as many times as we need." He began to object again but his limelight was stolen by princess Bubblegum.

"We have to remain relative to the cybermen within the Causal Nexus. Besides, having two sets of molecules which mirror each other and also exist in the same time-space could have huge consequences. If we travelled back then we'd interact with our past selves which could result in a massive temporo-quantum abnormality in the continuum which could destroy a region of space-time the size of…" she paused to take out a piece of paper and a pen to do some calculations.

Finn was still trying to work out what molecules were and Jake had lost interest and was thinking about lunch. The Doctor just sat back and watched eagerly to see what her result was (for he had already calculated the exact possible area in his mind to an accuracy of a centimetre.) Marceline just rolled her eyes.

_"Argghh I hate it when Bonnie gets all sciency on me. Maybe if she just explained it to me more often and let me take part in her experiments I could…"_

"An area the size of the grasslands, or about 6km squared."

"Interesting," The Doctor pondered aloud. "Your answer is spot on correct but I thought you didn't have proper time travel." Bubblegum glared at Jake.

"I suppose compared to you I don't but that doesn't mean I don't understand the principals behind it."

"Wait, if we only have one shot then we should probably turn around and see what's happening out there!" Jake spoke up, happy to be useful. The group took this on board and spun around just in time to see a massive crack of light streak across the inky blackness. It zig-zagged above the surface of the planet until the pressure was simply too much and the whole thing imploded. In its place there was a swirling mass of darkness that you couldn't see dead on but had to look sideways to see properly.

"The wormhole…", Bubblegum breathed. She took out her science glasses and placed them on her nose which made Marceline giggle. It was about another 30 seconds before anything new happened but when it did it made the wait all the more worth it. There was a flash of light that blinded the group and the wormhole seemed to writhe about like a living thing. An even more intense period of rumbling occurred until a simply gigantic metal spacecraft flew out of the portal.

"Whoa." Finn and Jake whispered. The ship was in a terrible state and smoke was pouring out of the sides like the TARDIS was inclined to do. The whole thing seemed to be a wreck and mini fires were breaking out and extinguishing themselves hundreds of times a second. It wasn't long before the ship was caught by the planets gravity and was pulled into the atmosphere where it began to heat up and fall apart. The observers squinted and saw where the cyber ship was headed. The ground was different to the rest of Ooo and looked like something straight out of the mushroom war. There was fire, volcanoes and magma everywhere, and that was before the ship crash landed.

"Please don't tell me that's where I think it is," Finn groaned. "Of all the places in Ooo they had to go crash into the one place which I hate most."

"Hey that place looks kinda like the…"

"The fire kingdom," Bubblegum finished Jake's sentence for him.

"Well hey let's make the best of a bad situation here." Marceline encouraged the despondent Finn. "Look on the bright side. At least we kill two birds with one stone by having them crash in the same place that the Doctor can use to power that device that can kill them, so that's something." She noticed his continued down heartedness. "Yep…really convenient on our part…what do you think Doctor?" His face was wrinkled in thought.

"Convenient yes, coincidence no. I suppose that's why I couldn't find them on the scanner or you couldn't see where they were before. They weren't using a perception filter, they were using heat!" He clapped his hands childishly at the insight. "The atmospheric heat haze that the fire kingdom gives off was enough to scramble my Cyberian artefact scanner and you never realised because the crash site blended in so well with the existing scenery of rock and fire."

"But they must have had at least some control over their landing site because they weren't going fast enough to lose complete control. Why would they land in such an inhospitable environment when there was much better alternatives? There's so many volcanoes, magma…heat." He stopped dead and turned to face Bubblegum who seemed to reach the same conclusion as him. Her face was grim.

"Whoa have you guys got a mental link or something going on because you always seem to know exactly the same things as each other at the same time." Jake asked after observing them make eye contact.

"Hey, great minds think alike." She said weakly.

"Well come on P-Bubbs what's the deal? Why'd they land in the fire kingdom?" Asked Finn.

"They had the same idea as us." She said at length, turning back to the Doctor and then back to Finn. "Like he said, that graviton wave blaster must have taken a huge amount of energy to fire. And that's how they did it. They fired it with fire."

"Say what?" Finn said.

"The Doctor was always saying that he would never gather enough electrical energy to use his emotional inhibiter encryption breaker but he realised he could use thermal energy to power it. The cybermen must have also realised that the fire kingdom contains a tremendous amount of easy to access power and so engineered their crash their so they could power their weapons with the surrounding magma."

"Wait if they were surrounded by this energy then why did they only fire that cannon thing once?" Marceline made her contribution to the discussion with indifference. "You said that it would be better for them to power their pals up and send them after us instead of that. So why didn't they?"

"Marceline you were asleep for that bit. How did you know?" The Doctor asked curiously.

"Vampire sleep." She shrugged her shoulders. "I couldn't really hear you but could sort of sense things. Plus I'm a light sleeper."

"Hmm…anyway like you said it's fortunate for us they're so close to where we need to go because I didn't bring my trainers for chasing after them." He finished up and pointed down to his lace up shoes, apparently ignoring Marceline's question.

"Finn are you sure you want to do this? I know it's going to be hard for you to see Flame princess after all this time so maybe you should sit this one out." Jake said, concerned.

"To save the world I'll do anything." This caused a few smiles all round. "Plus it's my fault and mine alone what happened between us and I think maybe it's time to make it right." His speech caused princess Bubblegum a little grief as she couldn't help but feel responsible for the whole break up.

_"If you hadn't pushed him so far then they would still be together. Still happy. But you rejected him and drove him to extremes and now he has nothing, because of you. Because of me." _She tried to push the thoughts out of her brain and just feel happy that she was going to make amends (albeit on Finn's behalf).

"Right I think we should probably get out of here as soon as possible as in about 30 seconds the past version of me is going to fly out of that wormhole, and what you said about identical molecules was absolutely right." The Doctor said while looking at his watch. "We don't need any complications, especially with the cybermen around." He sprang back up the stairs and addressed his companions.

"Right you lot, this is your captain speaking. Please find something appropriate to hang on to as we prepare for landing. Next stop fire kingdom!" Finn grinned and wrapped his arm around the railings while Jake more literally wrapped his arm around the ceiling straps. As the TARDIS began to shudder both Bubblegum and Marceline hadn't found anything to hang on to and were starting to get thrown about by the erratic flight path. The two girl's eyes locked and without warning Marceline walked purposefully over to Bubblegum and embraced her tightly.

"Marcy what are you…!" She looked down at the vampire queen who had buried her head in the crook of the princess's arm and a whole wave of emotions washed over her. Surprise, fear, guilt and disbelief were just some of the things she could feel coursing through her sugary blood.

_"What's brought this on? The Doctor said to hang on to something, not someone! I guess it is kind of a good substitute but there's more to it than that. She hasn't hugged me this tightly since I saved Hambo from Maja. No, no, no you're overcomplicating the situation." _She looked down at her, brushing away some of the gooey pink strands that were making an effort to stick to the vampire queen. _"Just be grateful and savour the moment."_

Bubblegum lifted her own arms out from under the vampires grasp and gently wrapped them around the other girl's body. Although the TARDIS was incredibly noisy and it was far too loud to hear anything above the din of the rotor, princess Bubblegum swore she could have heard a small moan escape the vampire queen's lips.

* * *

**And we're on to double figures! I always thought the group should come to terms with the war and made for some of my favourite dialogue so far. I may have made up new words and will continue to do so when the Doctor explains things, so sorry grammar police!**

**It's been 10 chapters (i know right!) so I'd love to know how you all think I'm doing so far. Feel free to praise/ criticize in reviews as they both help me improve for later chapters. Thanks again for your support! Until the next time, PozzyP out! **


	11. Explosive entry

It was just another day and another set of problems for the ruler of the fire kingdom. Flame princess sat on her throne and looked down at the newest arrival who had come seeking her help.

"…and if I don't meet the rent by the end of the week I'll get kicked out onto the street again. I'm not sure my wife could cope with the stress, especially since she got pregnant again." The man talking was a youngish fire elemental who could be no more than 23. His clothes, like his wife's, had seen better days and were falling apart. "I'm truly sorry to have to burden you like this, my lady, but I've got nowhere else to go. Please…" Her heart went out to him.

"It isn't a burden, it's my job to help other people…and I'll do so gladly." She reached behind herself and pulled out a bag of charcoal. "Here. This will do you more good than it will me." She gently threw the bag over to the hunching fire elemental who caught it, looking at it like it was pure gold.

"Oh thank-you, my lady, have ever can I repay you?!" He gave her a look of pure gratitude that Flame princess had grown to love over the past two years. The feeling of fulfilment as she made other people's dreams come true. Everybody else's except her own. She smiled warmly back to the kneeling figure.

"As I say to all the other people who come to me for help, you don't need to repay me. I'm just here to help you." She frowned slightly. "Actually there is one thing you can tell me before you go."

"Anything, your highness."

"You can just call me princess." She blushed. "Anyway…this isn't the first time I've seen you here before is it. As I recall you had a job the last time you came to me but now you don't. Why?" Her face was full of concern. The man glanced uneasily back and forth between the princess and his cowering wife.

"…Your grace must promise not to throw us into the dungeons for us telling you this." He said at length.

"I-I would never do anything quite so drastic for someone telling the honest truth to me." She gasped.

"W-well your grace that's sort of the reason I lost my job and can't pay rent anymore."

"What?!"

"Because of the truth policy you've put in place I couldn't lie to my boss when he asked if I valued my job or my wife more. I had to answer my wife, of course, and he fired my on the spot for not prioritising his company above all else."

"That's horrible. Tell me his name so I can bring him to justice." She said, flames flaring up.

"No, no it's fine, please don't!" He nearly jumped out of his skin as her flames rose. "But word on the street is that this isn't as rare as you would like to think, your majesty."

"Huh?" Her flames died a little.

"People are getting annoyed with your law of no lies." It's cost them, me included, quite a lot. Sometimes privacy and in truths can help and protect people." This sent her over the edge and her flames grew and grew until she towered over the cowering family.

"NO! LYING ONLY HURTS THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU! IT IS THE WORST THING THAT HAS EVER HAD THE AUDACITY TO TRY TO DESTROY THE PEOPLE I LO…" She became conscious of the people that were trembling below and she quickly shrank back down to regular size.

_"What…what have I done? These people have done nothing to deserve this. I need to control myself more. _Forgive me, that was uncalled for, I'm sorry. You may go now." The couple fled out of the doors and out of the gates as fast as their legs would allow them, just happy to escape with their lives. Flame princess slumped back in her chair, drained and unhappy. Unhappy with this new development but also with herself. How she wished Cinnamon Bun was around to comfort her but he was away visiting family and would be gone for a few weeks. Without him she felt vulnerable.

"Oh deary me princess, looks like we're in a spot of bother." She looked upwards to where an enormous lantern hung.

"Not now, father." She groaned. He always had to try to ruin her rare moments of relaxation with his jibes at how she wasn't fit to rule her (or 'his' in his own mind) kingdom.

"Dissent in the ranks." He continued. "Opposition to your rule from the streets. Letting people come to you with their pitiful gripes and problems. You should be ashamed to call yourself my daughter." He sneered.

"Hey at least I care about them, unlike you. I rule as just another one of them and with compassion, not fear as you always did." She snapped.

"Oh it was brilliant," he relished the memory. "People always did what I wanted, when I wanted and they were glad to be given the opportunity for doing so. They were so afraid of questioning my rule that the kingdom practically ran itself. Don't tell me you don't wish it would do that for you?"

"No! No I don't!" She spluttered, but was inwardly tensing.

_"Day in, day out these people, my subjects, come to me for help. Sometimes I wish they could just be more independent and take care of themselves. No that's not the problem…"_ She sat silently berating herself for considering her father to be right, even for a second. _"Maybe this job would be easier if I just had someone to talk to, to share my burden. Cinnamon bun has always been there for me but just as a friend. A knight. Maybe I need someone more than that. Fi…" _Her deep thoughts were cut offby another one of her father's lectures.

"Oh I know that look. Your thinking about that human boy again aren't you. He's even less worthy to rule this place than you. Mind you despite not being a fire born he still has many of the qualities you'll never have. Leadership, courage. What was his name again? Was it Flint or something?"

"Who Finn?" She tried to laugh off his scarily accurate guess. "No he's not my type. I made it perfectly clear to him that we were just friends last time I saw him. Last time I saw him…" she trailed off.

"You know even though I'm still evil I know true love when I see it. How do you think me and your mother got together? I know you still have feelings for him so don't lie." He laughed. "Heck you can't even lie anymore can you? So answer my question", he said putting on a serious face. "Do you still love him?"

She groaned in frustration at her father's words. She knew that by her own rules she had to tell the true, but in truth she still didn't know how she felt. Finn had lied to her and turned everything she loved into a weapon to hurt her.

In some ways he was no better than princess Bubblegum and yet…she knew that deep down princess Bubblegum still cared a lot about other people, put them before herself and had made more sacrifices for others than she could possibly count. Maybe Finn was the same. She still had feelings for him but was confused as to what the feelings were. They weren't love but they were…something. She gradually came back to reality at her fathers continued ramblings.

"Of course if Frillnm or…flynn, that's his name, right?...isn't the one for you there's always Don-jon."

"Yeah I'm still up for it if you are." Flame princess was momentarily confused as to where the voice was coming from until she remembered that Don-jon also shared the lamp with her father.

"Forget it you creep. You're arrogant and cruel so don't even think about it!"

"Why you little…" He began.

"Patience, Donny boy." Flame king stopped him. "You'll have your chance later." He sat back down and muttered how he would enslave the whole kingdom with his mind control when he got out. Flame princess slumped back even further. While she had been physically exhausted with all the charity work and running the kingdom for the day, after her conversation with Flame king she was now emotionally drained as well. She would have drifted off into a light sleep had her ears not picked up the faint but gradually increasing sound of, what sounded like an enormous lawnmower approaching.

"Dad cut it out I'm trying to sleep here." She mumbled. Flame king turned to Don-jon within the lantern.

"You said you hadn't completed that device to break us out of here yet!" He hissed.

"Whoa man, I haven't done anything." He replied.

"Oh…sorry my naïve princess but we're not the ones causing this." He said while the wheezing continued to grow louder in volume. By this point Flame princess was one her feet and looking around for the source.

"Guards, come to me!" She shouted. "I think we're under attack!" The guards who had previously lined the walls of the room ran over and formed a loose circle around the monarch with their spears pointing outwards.

"Prepare to defend! Prepare to defend our leader!" They yelled in unison.

"Hey shouldn't I get some protection?" Asked Flame king. Before he could be told to shut up by Flame princess, the noise increased to near deafening levels and a rectangular blue box materialised into view. There were several moments of silence as the whole room adapted to the new development. They'd been expecting some sort of invasion force, not a wooden crate. Before the guards could recover, the doors swung open, though nobody came out immediately.

"Doc, are you sure this was the best way to enter?" Came a voice which Flame princess thought she could recognise.

"Yeah the front door approach never gets old. It shows them no we mean them no harm." An odd voice she'd never heard before spoke.

"Um Doctor, I'm pretty sure we skipped the door and just landed in their room." Another vaguely familiar voice answered.

"Oh well I guess I overshot. Not to worry I've always favoured the direct approach. Much quicker than front door any day." Flame princess quickly regained her composure; this was after all her palace and she couldn't been seen to be intimidated by anyone who dared to enter with hostile intent. She was momentarily shocked by the first person to step out of the mystery crate.

"Princess Bubblegum!" She took a step back. She took a closer look at her clothing. "What are you wearing?"

"Oh this?" Bubblegum looked down at her purple combat boots and trench/lab coat. "Oh I'm just trying a new look. You like it," she said while twirling.

"Um great. Yeah…it, uh…suits you."

"Wait, why are you focusing on my clothes so much?" She said confused. "I literally just dropped out of the sky into your home but you don't seem as confused as I thought you would."

"Honestly I'm not even surprised anymore." She replied matter-of-factly. "Every other day you're inventing crazy stuff like sand worms and laser swans so this is kinda just the norm for you now. Another weird machine that you've suddenly created…it just doesn't impress me like it used to."

"Doesn't impress you?! DOESN"T IMPRESS YOU?!" Another figure stepped out of the box wearing a ridiculous outfit that made Finn's bear hat look tame. "My lady this is an incredible feat of bio-mechanical engineering that has near limitless potential that is literally the most unique object you will ever lay eyes on…and you're not impressed. You must have been through a lot." This last statement caught the young ruler off guard. One minute he seemed to be ranting about his science machine and the next he had undone her in a single sentence.

"Yeah…yeah I guess I have…wait, hold on I haven't seen you before. Are you from one of the neighbouring kingdoms or what?"

"Oh no I'm not from 'round these parts. This place actually reminds me of my home. The fire, the burning…" he said in a small voice before trailing off with a faraway look in his eyes.

"Oh I'm sorry I didn't mean to…" she began.

"No it's fine, really." He held out his hand. "You must be the Flame princess that everybody's been talking about. Great to meet you." He had a smile that warmed her up from the inside.

"Nice to meet you too. Forgive me for not shaking your hand but errr…I'm kinda made of fire."

"Nonsense I'll be perfectly fine." He reiterated.

"Uh Doc, can you run by us how exactly you're going to be fine?" Came yet another voice from within the box. "And how exactly are you and PB not getting all cooked up out there? You don't have flame shield on."

"TARDIS atmospheric excitation system. I'm generating an air current about 20 feet above us that protects us from the heat at a distance of about 100 meters. You're perfectly safe, Jake, so come and say hi."

"Alright but it feels wrong being here with no flame shield, like being naked."

"Jake you're a dog. You're naked all the time." A new voice spoke. It sounded like…

_"No…it can't be. I'm not ready for him…not now. Anybody except for…_hi Finn!" Flame princess put on a fake smile that the Doctor could all too easily see past. "How's it been for the past few years? Long-time no see?"

"Um yeah…I was going to come and see you but…" He was cut off.

"Finn I thought I told you to only come here if you would tell me the truth," she sighed. "Never mind what are you all doing here?" All eyes in the room seemed to swivel to the Doctor.

"Doc, stage is yours." Marceline said, as she popped her head out of the doors.

"Actually before we get to that I don't think I caught your name…Mr…?'

"Doctor."

"Doctor who?" This caused him to smile.

"Never gets old, unlike me. Wait sorry, yes, it's just the Doctor."

"You do realise that while you remain within these walls you have to tell me the truth and only the truth?" Her face hardened. "You sit behind a mask of lies, Doctor. So…I'll ask you again…what is your name?" Her flames seemed to grow brighter and Jake could sense what was about to happen.

"No really it's just the Doctor. Simply the Doctor. The one, the only, and if I might say so, the best." He grinned childishly.

"LIAR!" Flame princess tried to control her anger but years of pent up, confused, emotions that had been looking for a way out were suddenly unleashed as her flames engulfed her and her face became more demonic. "I'VE SEEN ENOUGH LIE'S TOO KNOW WHEN SOMEONE'S TELLING ME ONE!" She yelled. "YOU WILL SUBMIT TO ME AND YOU WILL TELL ME YOUR REAL NAME!" Her voice grew in volume as did her body and she was soon towering over the newcomers. Everyone in the room was cowering away from the inferno, including the guards (who were just as afraid of her as they were loyal) and Marceline (who never usually ran from anything). There was one man who was not cowering in fear, however. The Doctor looked up at the fiery girl and simply said:

"No."

"WHAT? YOU DARE STAND UP TO MY FIERY WRATH? YOU WILL FEEL THE POWER OF A FIRE ELEMENTAL YOU PUNY FOOL!"

"No."

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?! TELL ME YOUR NAME!

"No, princess. I can't. Not until you honour your truth policy to its fullest extent by not lying to the one person who you thought you could protect with it. Yourself."

"WHAT…HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT? I CREATED THIS LAW FOR THE GOOD OF MY PEOPLE." Although she kept up the inferno she was starting to falter inwardly.

"No…I'm so sorry FP, but no. It's my fault" It wasn't the Doctor who had spoken. It was Finn. "I drove you to do this and I'm sorry. I've heard the rumours about how people have suffered under the policy. People who've suffered because of me. You only made the law because I had so selfishly lied to you for my own gain and you were scared it could happen again. I'm sorry."

"NO YOU'VE GOT IT ALL…you've got it wro…you're right." Her flames dissipated and she resumed her humanoid form. "I lied to myself and thought I was doing the right thing by getting rid of lies. But I didn't do it for my subjects, I did it for myself. I was so afraid of a repeat of last time I selfishly used my power to make others suffer for my own weaknesses. I'm such a bad ruler."

"No don't say that." He rushed up to her. "You've freed these people from centuries of harsh tyranny and ruled with benevolence I can only dream of. You do everything from the heart and you've made this a better place for everyone and I won't let you think even for a second that you're a bad ruler.

"Finn…" she turned looked up and met his eyes.

You're…"he struggled to find the words as they stared into each other's eyes. "FP…you're the best and…I lo…"

"Ah how touching. I'll get the wedding bells, shall I?" Flame princess groaned as the moment passed and they averted their gazes away from each other.

"Father…not now." She looked up where her father was looking down at her. She brushed her feelings off and resumed her regal stance. "Right, Finn just because you're here it doesn't change anything." His face fell at this. "I'm still mad at you for what you did but I'm willing to put that behind us until you've all explained what you're doing here. It must be pretty important for you all to come barging in like this, so tell me what the deal is." The Doctor cleared his throat to restart his explanation but Flame princess held up her hand.

"Doctor, I'm sorry for what I just did. Over the past few weeks I've come to realise that maybe having secrets can be useful, but as long as they aren't used to hurt others." She bowed to him slightly.

"Oh it's all water under the bridge. Actually by not telling my real name I'm keeping the lot of you safe from a dangerous amount of people." Before anybody had time to ask him about why his name was dangerous, he continued on. "Right, yes, I have reason to believe that everybody here is in grave danger from invaders. They aren't like anything you've faced before and if they're plan succeeds this whole place, not just the fire kingdom but Ooo itself will fall." He was deadly serious, which looked out of place next to his awful dress sense.

"Are you sure? I haven't been informed of any such invasion force coming near to our kingdom." She said.

"Really? We saw them crash land on the outskirts of your kingdom nearly two months ago. How could you miss that kind of biz?" Jake asked.

"This is the fire kingdom. Things explode and fall all the time from the volcanoes so it must have just fallen under the radar." Flame princess's face grew stern. "And why would you wait nearly two months to tell me this? What were you doing for two months that was more important than another war?

"Uh we didn't." Marceline interjected. "We saw it two months ago, ten minutes ago and then landed here two minutes ago. That make sense?"

"What no?!" Her flames started to flare up again. "How can you be two months ago, today?! Explain to me!"

"Normally I love to explain all the ins and outs of it all but seeing we're going to be in the middle of a combat zone if we don't hurry I'm just going to cover it with time travel." Noting her shocked expression the Doctor carried on. "Yeah I have a machine that can actually properly travel in time but mind if we just skip to the end of that moment so we can get on with the debriefing?"

"Right…so let's just say I go along with your prank here…what's the big deal?" Her face said that she clearly didn't buy the time machine idea. "Who're we facing that can destroy the world as we know it if we don't stop them?"

"Ah good question finally!" He said while straightening his bowtie. "They're called the cybermen. Technologically upgraded metal warriors that will either try to turn you into one of them, and failing that, destroy you. But don't worry of got a bit of a plan/thing going to stop them, which is where you come in."  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa hold on.' I really don't see what the issue is. You said they're made of metal… and we're in the fire kingdom." She motioned to her guards. "Every one of us is capable of producing fires hot enough to melt even the toughest metals. There's simply no way they're a threat to us as we can just melt them with our pyro-kinesis and what not. Why're you so worked up?"

"Trust us flame princess, they're not as easy as that." Finn said while rubbing his arm which was still sore from the grassland battle.

"I'd love to say they have integrated affluoenzial biometrics but how can I make this simple for you?" The Doctor contemplated aloud.

'Hey I'm smart! You don't have to treat me like a baby!" Flame princess glared at him.

"Trust me FP he isn't being condescending. Just nod when he stops for breath." Marceline told her.

"Ok the bottom line is they're learning computers," Princess Bubblegum explained. "Every second we spend fighting them only increases their knowledge of how to beat us." She motioned to Flame princess's hands. "Even with your powers if you try to fire a fireball at one of them their outer layer will just adapt and make it that much harder to defeat them. We have to follow the Doctor's plan to the letter or they'll destroy us easily."

"Either that or Peebles will explain it and confuse you. She and the Doctor seem to be in the zone together." They both gave a look to Marceline who had just spoken.

"Come on, Marcy, this is serious!" Bubblegum said, annoyed. Marceline stepped back in mock hurt.

"You know I can be serious occasionally. I did it once but it got boring."

"Whatever but just try to stay focused, deal?" Marceline mock saluted her, much to her annoyance.

"Sorry to interrupt this frankly boring conversation but what's the plan? Why do you need to be here for this plan to work? Why not the candy kingdom?" Flame princess said as she butted in to Bubblegum and Marceline's fourth 'stare off.'

"Well from here we've got several advantages over the cybermen." The Doctor spoke and counted the points off on his fingers.

"1) Here we're in an easily defendable room with only one way in and out, not including the door at the back but scanning the architecture I can safely assume that it just leads to an inner sanctum of some sort and doesn't actually provide another way in."

"2) The way the cyber movement dampeners work they'll overheat their moving parts if they try to use any of that sound speed movement in here (Finn and Jake breathed a sigh of relief at this)."

"3) The most crucial point. I can use the incredible amounts of thermal energy present in this place to power a device to knock out the cybermen's emotionally inhibiters which will hopefully destroy them."

"4) In the event we do fail then we'll get instant cremations."

"Right any questions?" He looked around but only Flame princess and Bubblegum had their hands raised. He pointed at Flame princess who stuck her tongue out at Bubblegum.

"Yeah how are you going to use the energy to power this device of yours? You also said we would destroy them so I suppose that means kill. Do we really have to? Couldn't we just reason with them and convince them not to invade?" Her kind hearted and compassionate personality shone through the young ruler of the fire kingdom and the Doctor couldn't help but smile.

"To answer your first question I'm going to spend the next hour or so building the device and then work back from there to figure out how to harness the energy that surrounds this place." His face grew dark. "Second question…yes…I'm sorry but it's the only way. Normally I would…I would try to find an alternative but the cybermen have no pity. No mercy or feelings. They rip out everything which makes a person alive and stick the leftovers into a suit of armour." He looked Flame princess directly in the eye. "If we try to reason with them…if we hesitate by even a second they will kill us. But not if we're strong. Show your people what you're prepared to do to protect them." He finished still staring her down.

Bubblegum observed the conversation and knew he was trying to speed the process up by manipulating her into complying by playing with her feelings for her subjects. Beneath the whimsical and eccentric exterior was a man who wouldn't hesitate to manipulate others if the stakes were high enough. Brushing off the dark clouds of doubt she continued to keep her hand in the air to ask her question. Eventually he noticed and pointed to her.

"Yes even if you complete your device we still don't have the code to break the inhibitors. How are we going to get it?"

"Ah well it's not so much 'we' as 'you' on this one."

"Wait hold up, Doc. What're you saying?" Jake asked.

"While I stay here and finish building the device, you're all going to sneak into their crashed ship and steal the code from the main computer."

"And you're not coming with us? That doesn't sound safe at all!" Finn began.

"Finn, think about it," Princess Bubblegum said. "If the cybermen had anymore reactivated units they would've sent them out to us while we were vulnerable on the grasslands. The place will be pretty deserted and I don't think security will be a big problem in ship which crash landed here. Right Doctor?"

"It's so satisfying hearing someone else explain everything I was about to say. We make a great team, Bonnie."

"Well, yes, I suppose we do." She hid her face which began to blush. Marceline scowled at her then said:

"Doc, none of us can fly the TARDIS so how will we get there?" Thinking she had poked a hole in his master plan, she smiled, but was disappointed at his reply.

"Not to worry I've already programmed the coordinates in to the console so all you have to do is walk in and flip the lever to take off."

"And how do we get back?" She pressed, hoping to catch him out.

"Another fine question! I've set emergency program 3 to activate after 1 hour. If you don't succeed in 1 hour then the TARDIS will return to its last destination, which is right here right now."

"Hold on another sec here!" Jake was ever the voice of doubt. "So you're saying if we don't infiltrate this base, take out any more repaired cyber units on the way, find the code in an alien computer and then walk all the way back to the TARDIS in one hour then we'll be trapped in the creepiest place since Finn's mind vault, forever? No way man!"

"Jake the 1 hour time limit is for our benefit, not theirs. Think of it as a race or game or something, but not so much you forget what's going on around you." The Doctor's attempt to play on Jake's love for games and messing around failed to persuade him.

"Doc…what happens after an hour?" The Doctor gave his arms up in defeat.

"Alright you got me. The cybermen are weak now but they're not defenceless. Every second we spend deliberating they get stronger." He checked his watch. "In approximately 1 hour they reach lethal capacity. If you're not out by the hour then I'm sorry…but you're on your own. We lose." People's gazes shifted uneasily at how effortlessly he spoke of failure. "Of course I live in hope. There's always hope and right now you are the hope." He pointed to each and everyone in the room he had made acquaintance with. "I have complete and utter faith in all of you. You won't fail because I know you won't; trust me…I'm the Doctor."

"Yeah come on guys! We got this, it'll be fun, right?"

"Forever the daredevil, eh Marcy?" Finn said to the floating vampire.

"You know it, dude. I'm not very good with computers, let alone alien ones, but I bet Bonnie can work it out." She spoke with surprising conviction. "You Finn, and you Jake, can use your skills as Ooo's greatest champions to take any out obstacle out on our way." They high-fived at this. "I'll provide some sweet jams on my bass to make the trip more interesting and Flame princess…uh, you can light the way in dark corridors." Marceline began aimlessly strumming a few chords on her axe bass.

_"Whoa since when has Marcy been the responsible one? It's like she and PB have swapped roles cos she's suddenly all serious and supportive while Peebles goes and fires laser bolts at the cybermen to destroy them. Weird day." _Finn thought.

"You can't be serious!" Flame princess objected. "I can't come with you guys. My place is here with my people."

"Trust me you'll do more good to your people if you go with them. Unless you happen to know an advanced level of quasi-katernal frequency physics to help me build this machine."

"Um…were those even real words?" She quizzed.

"Maybe."

"Whatever, but I can't just abandon my kingdom like this. I've got to stay here."

"FP the crash site is still technically within the fire kingdom's boundaries. You don't actually have to leave your people **and **you can help us locate the trigger code." Bubblegum explained to her. Flame princess looked around at her guards which had remained motionless the whole time.

"Don't worry your majesty we'll hold down the fort until your return." The commander spoke up.

"Thanks Scorchius."

"Yes run along child of mine. You can trust me not to inexplicably escape and usurp you while you're gone." Flame king stood forgotten in his suspended lamp.

"Father…no." She took in her surroundings again. "Right we should probably go."

"Agreed. Remember that I have faith in all of you."

"Thanks, Doctor." Bubblegum spoke for all of her friends when she replied. They turned to leave but he called them back.

"Ooh, one last thing: Don't mess with the TARDIS controls and don't look through my DVD collection."

"Umm, that's two things, but yeah you can count on us, Doc." Jake waved with his stretchy arm as they all filed back into the TARDIS.

"Wait how're we all going to fit in here?...…OH…MY…GLOB!"

* * *

**A/N. And thus Flame princess joins the story! I had a criminal amount of fun writing this chapter and just her character in general. If you think I've done the characterization justice or failed horrifically feel free to comment on it, and the story in general.**

**Nearly half way through now but be prepared for surprises from both universes. Until the next time, PozzyP out!**


	12. Operation: infiltration

'It's…it's bigger on the inside!" Flame princess gasped.

"Just file under 'freak out about later' and you'll be fine," Marceline reassured.

"Thanks, but wow. This place is amazing!" She took in the beautiful glass flooring around, what she assumed was, some sort of control panel. It was filled with countless buttons and switches that would have taken hours to press and various other gizmos whose function eluded her. "I'm starting to think time-travel isn't so farfetched after all."

"That's the spirit Flame princess!" Bubblegum smiled. "A good leader is always open to new ideas no matter how fantastical they might look." This earned her a look from the fire kingdoms monarch, as she still felt a degree of…neutrality towards the candy kingdom's princess for what she'd done in the past and was slightly perplexed as to why she would now be giving her advice. Brushing away the thoughts, she decided to learn more about her host.

"So the Doctor…this is his time machine then? What's his deal? He said he wasn't from around here but he's helping us. Why?"

"Do you really need to live close to help others?" Finn asked her. "I go off adventuring to faraway places all the time and help people around me regardless of where I'm from. It doesn't matter does it? He's just a good person trying to help."

"Yeah I guess." She answered back. "So have you guys known him long?"

"Nah not really. We only just met him yesterday." Jake said.

"Really?! And he's just given us his time travel machine because he trusts us?" Flame princess said incredulously. "How can you trust him?"

"I…we just can," Bubblegum said at length (omitting the part where she'd seen into his mind). "Look we're wasting time! The Doctor said the longer we take, the stronger the cybermen get. We need to hurry up!"

"Just relax, princess. Take a chill pill already." It took all of Bubblegum's willpower not to slap Marceline there and then for her laidback attitude to the problem.

"Just help me look for the lever so we can get out of here." She climbed up the stairs to the console.

"Wait you don't know which one it is?" Finn said in bewilderment. "Man, there's got to be like a bajillion levers here. How're we gonna find it in time?"

"Yeah, Bonnie. I thought you were a complete know it all about everything. How can you not know?" Marceline was really starting to get on Bubblegum's nerves, but she let it pass so she could concentrate on finding the ignition lever. "You're supposed to be super tight with the Doctor so why don't you know?"

"Why?!" Her patience gave out. "I don't remember it being my job to memorize the internal schematics of this place. Why don't you just help me look instead of making meaningless jibes?" Her face was red from shouting but what would have been an awkward moment for everyone in the room was quickly averted by Marceline saying:

"Alright fine." She walked up the stair to where Bubblegum was and flipped one of the countless lever to her left. "There. Happy now?" The whole room shuddered.

"Marceline, did you just guess? The Doctor told us not to mess with the controls," Flame princess began.

"Relax, vampire memory. I know I got the right one so cool it." She began playing on her bass once more.

"Wait you knew this whole time which one it was?" Bubblegum's temper was rising again. "The whole world is at stake where every second counts so why didn't you tell us!"

"Yeah, Marce, that ain't cool." Jake added.

"It was more fun for me to watch you guess, I guess. But hey I pressed it right? What's the big deal?" Before Bubblegum could point out the various logic pitfalls in Marceline's argument the room shuddered again and the monitor sprang to life. It cast out a 3 dimensional image that glowed blue and took the Doctor's form. Being familiar with holo-casters the group weren't too surprised but were startled none the less. The projection spoke with the Doctor's voice.

"Warning to all passengers. This time capsule has been instilled with the action of emergency program 3. After a pre-designated time has elapsed this unit will return to its last physical location as the situation of the location it is about to visit is deemed too unsafe to remain at for more than the designated time period. The pre-designated time period set for this voyage is fixed at 1 hour. Thank you for taking the time to watch this pre-recorded holo message and prepare for departure."

With this the central column of blown glass began to rise and fall. Gradually picking up speed, that wheezing noise Flame princess had heard earlier was heard once more as the TARDIS began to dematerialize once more to its most dangerous location in Ooo so far.

Vwoorp…vwoorp…..vwoorp….

The noise of the TARDIS filled the humid air of the metallic chamber it had landed in. Although it was an indoor location, the air temperature was still warm and had a dense, sluggish feel to it.

"Hey, where do you guys think you're going?" Bubblegum asked as the other's headed to the door.

"Um, we were going to leave…y'know to find the code…and get out of here," Finn said innocently.

"Yeah we've only got like an hour and I don't wanna get left behind or nothing," Jake backed him up. Bubblegum looked at the group like they were all insane.

"Are you guys serious? You're all just going to go out like that with no plan or backup?"

"We only have an hour." Flame princess concluded. "Our time is not best spent forming plans and instead we should just go out and look for it as quick as possible. Clean and simple."

"Come on you guys!" Bubblegum pleaded, exasperated. "If we all go out as one big group we'll never find the code in time. We need to split up which will give us an approximately 67.5% better chance."

"Wow science just got involved, yawn." Marceline actually had to stifle a yawn. "Hey BMO baby you awake?" She walked up to the console where the game system was sitting.

"Oh yes, scary vampire lady. Beemo is awake," It announced triumphantly. Marceline smiled.

"Good girl. Or boy. Never mind, BMO do you think you can hack this thing and deactivate emergency program 3?" Bubblegum marched over to them.

"What are you playing at Marceline?!" Her voice was heard through gritted teeth. "You're wasting time."

"Relax, princess." She leaned back on the railing. "If BMO can stop the program then we'll have all the time we need, Right BMO?"

"Yay Beemo!" The little robot danced about and re-plugged itself into the console.

"Are you nuts!? BMO can't hack into this. It's way too futuristic and complex and runs based on algorithms I haven't even seen before." Bubblegum drew her hair up in her hands. "The calculations to break through the outer security alone would take at least…" She was cut off by BMO.

"Beemo is done! Yay Beemo!" It jumped up and down on the buttons.

"Wait so you actually hacked it? Does this mean we have more time now?" Finn queried.

"No, but I have downloaded copies of all other existing emergency programs. I can try to change the current program of 3 to another one like 5 or 17."

"Well it's not perfect but it's better than nothing." Marceline high fived the robot then turned to Bubblegum. "What's that, Bonnie?" She spoke with a ridiculously high pitched, girly, mocking voice. "There's no way we can hack into this computer. Oh no wait we totally just did. In your face, princess." She laughed. For once Bubblegum was lost for words. In the space of less than 30 seconds she had been stood up and bested by none other than her arch rival Marceline. Finn, Jake and even Flame princess were stifling giggles.

'Alright! I admit I was wrong about the computer…but that doesn't mean that the cybermen aren't getting stronger the more we wait. We still have to hurry." She huffed.

"Cool it, spoilsport." Marceline chuckled. "You don't want to ruin BMO's moment do you?"

"Grrrrrr whatever! Look to make this quicker for all of us I've designed a pairing system that will maximize our chances of locating the code the quickest."

"Typical princess Bubblegum," Flame princess snorted. "Takes it upon herself to decide what's best for other people."

"Yeah PB we should pick our own pairings." Finn exclaimed. "We all know each other's strengths and weaknesses better than some scientific mumbo-jumbo does."

"Yeah and, pardon me for saying this but, I don't particularly want to end up getting paired with you." Flame princess added. "I respect you and all but I'm still not on board with you locking me up for 15 years of my life."

"Hey I'll pair with you, FP," Marceline slid down the railing and landed next to the fiery leader. "I don't like Bonnie much and you seem cool enough."

"Sure, you don't seem so bad either." They hi-fived which Flame princess initially recoiled from but, when she realised she wasn't burning the other girl, she reciprocated the gesture.

"How come I'm not burning you?"

"Vampire. I'll explain after we split from the others."

"Cool. See you guys later." And with that the two broke off from the main group and walked out of the doors before princess Bubblegum could stop them. She turned to Finn and Jake.

"Don't look at us, princess," Jake said. "We've been on countless adventures together and know each other's style. No hard feelings right?"

"No, no you guys go. I'll be fine on my own," she lied. "And hurry. The longer we spend, the stronger they get."

"You can count on us PB." They both left through the door. She smiled sadly after them.

_"Alone. Surrounded by friends and yet in the end I'm always alone." _She thrust her hand into her coat pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. On it were the names of everybody she had paired together. Although she hadn't voiced her choices for the groups, her companions had sorted themselves exactly in line with what she had written down. Lines joining flame princess and Marceline. Finn and Jake. And herself, circled and alone.

_"Best for them to think they picked their own partners. If I'd chosen to go solo myself, Finn would have begun to suspect. It's better this way. No fuss."_

"Princess if you don't want to go alone I could go with you." She was brought out of her melancholy thought train by a small voice from the console.

"BMO I could never endanger you like that. If you were to get hurt the others would never forgive me, and I could never forgive myself."

"No Beemo wants to come. Beemo will chop the bad guys with Beemo chop."

"I don't think that…"

"I can also tell you about the other emergency protocols in place which I downloaded."

"Well…" she remained conflicted. "…alright but stay close to me."

"Yay Beemo." The little cyan hued robot jumped into her arms and they proceeded to exit the police box, together.

The Doctor watched the TARDIS dematerialise from his vision back in the fire kingdom's palace. As soon as it did, however, he began to notice that the air temperature seemed to be rising at an alarming rate.

"Ah, right, it appears the TARDIS has taken its atmospheric excitation system with it. To be expected considering it's attached but now I've lost my protection I can feel myself beginning to burn." He turned to the guards who were filing silently back to their places at the side of the room.

"Hey does anybody know what a flame shield is? My friends mentioned it earlier and I really think I could use one, whatever it is." The nearest one looked at his captain, who gave a nod of approval, and then walked over to the Timelord. He began chanting some sort of spell which the Doctor translated inside his mind as.

_"People of the flame! Grant us passage into you're mighty realm with the protection of a thousand suns. Receive us! Hear us!" _

Several runes began to float around his body and when the guard stopped speaking he pressed the tip of his index finger to the Doctor's head. Instead of burning it felt like warm toast had been pressed upon him, and when he opened his eyes after closing them he saw his body and clothes were engulfed in a blue aura.

"Well at least my bowtie's safe." This drew a few looks. "Anyway I've got a machine to build." He emptied his pockets and far more material than should have been allowed to fit inside fell out. "Play time's over. Geronimo."

* * *

**A/N: As this chapter is shorter and just supplements the previous one in terms of idea, I'm uploading two chapters today (yay) as a way of saying sorry for this short one. The next (titled: Bro time) will appear at the same time as this one just so you're aware.**


	13. Bro time

"Man this sucks." Finn and Jake walked slowly through metre after metre of abandoned corridor. It was Finn who had spoken. "The first 'all metal' dungeon I get to explore and there's nothing here to do. No treasure to steal, no monsters to fight; this blows."

"Man, don't wish too hard," Jake laughed nervously. "Or we'll suddenly have lots of cybermen to deal with and that didn't exactly turn out good last time." He rubbed his elbow from the memory.

"Yeah I guess, but still…" He looked around at the new corridor they had just walked into. Finn couldn't be sure it was a new corridor though as it looked exactly the same as the last one they had walked through. And the one before that. And the one before that as well. It was as if the cyber architects had deliberately decided to make the place as repetitive and annoying to navigate as possible (Which was likely as they had no concept of imagination).

The walls were all grey and had scorch marks that were likely left over from the crash. Numerous cracks covered the floor but Finn wasn't sure if they were due to the crash landing or the intense heat that filled the air. His breathing was shallow and was sweating like mad. Jake was shifting into numerous desert creatures such as snakes and camels to try to see what was best for losing heat.

"Jake?" Finn asked at length as they rounded another corner into an identical one.

"Yeah."

"Do you…do you think we made the right choice back there in the TARDIS."

"About what?"

"You know about leaving PB behind and going bro style."

"Man I like the princess and all but she's a science person, not a fighter." Jake said.

"Come on she practically saved our butts from Ricardio by taking him on hand to hand. And then she had to carry us back to the Candy kingdom which took another two days and another one to create an antidote to the Zanoid infection. She can totes hold her own in a fight. Do you think we bunked up by ditching her?"

"She would just cramp our style." He reasoned. "And besides she said she was fine with it so no big deal right." Finn turned to face Jake.

"You and I both know that she was lying. Tone of her voice."

"Well…yeah ok I noticed, but what could we do about it? She told us to split up to make finding this thing easier. If she'd come with us instead of going it alone then we would have less chance of finding it and I don't want Ooo to be remodelled with a metal face on it." Though Jake's logic was good, Finn's moral compass was still conflicted.

"Yeah but…but we still ditched her even after all she's done for us and all she's been through. Losing her kingdom, her children even. That's what she saw her subjects as; her own children, and now they're gone. We should have taken her along so we could comfort her or something."

"I suppose, but we can do all the hugging and consolation biz after we find the computer. Hey I bet if we went with her we'd just slow her down as computers and science are kinda her area. She'll be fine."

"Maybe…maybe." Finn murmured as they continued deeper into the space wreck.

Both of them had to walk fairly quickly as the metal of the floor was conducting all of the fire kingdom's residual heat through it, which was burning their feet. At least that's what they would have thought if they had decided to bring princess Bubblegum along with them and got her to explain, but instead just thought it was hot and they should keep moving.

"Oh Grod it's like an oven in here. Make it stop!" Wailed Jake.

"We're not giving up. The Doctor, no the world is counting on us to find that computer code thing and as heroes we're not going to give up. It's our job." Finn looked around at Jake. "And besides how do you think I feel? You can just turn into a piece of paper or something to lose all your heat."

"Oh yeah!" Jake laughed. He proceeded to shrink his body down into something not very paper like.

"Dude…what's that? That isn't paper at all!" Finn said.

"Nah, man it's a frilled-neck lizard."

"A huzzah ma what?" He replied.

"You know like a lizard, but with a fan around its neck to lose heat easier so kinda like paper." Finn shook his head.

"Never mind let's just keep going." Finn scratched his head and, after an unsuccessful attempt to rid himself of the heat induced itch, he resorted to removing his bear hat. His golden locks fell around him but clumped together in strings due to the sweat build up.

"Gross, dude," Jake said when he saw the tangled, sweaty mess of hair

I'm not even sure we're going anywhere anymore." Finn remarked, eager to change the subject. "All these corridors look the same. Maybe we're walking around in circles." Jake sniffed the humid air.

"Nah. Dog sense says we haven't been through here yet so I say we keep going."

"Dude you're not even a dog anymore, you're a lizard thing."

"I still got the nose though." He enlarged his nose back to regular size to prove his point. "And my nose is telling me that there's something new up ahead."

"Like as in not boring metal corridor type action. Woo-hoo!" Yelled Finn.

"Dude keep it down!" Jake said in a hushed tone. "This place is bound to have some spare cybermen lurking around and I don't want them to think it's playtime. Plus whatever's up ahead isn't good different it's bad different. Like a blot on the Jake-dar's nose scanner. We got to be stealthy, like ninjas."

"Bro, we **are **ninjas." Finn reminded him. "Remember when we got hold of ice king's fridjitsu book and mastered the techniques of ice and whatnot."

"Finn, he took away our ninja power's when we left the kingdom as a result of trashing his castle."

"Oh yeah."

"And besides, you know ice powers don't work in humid environments in any case. So if we did have them still they'd be a flop in here."

"Who told you that?" Finn asked.

"Shelby. He went on some quest a while back with the ice king."

"Huh? He never mentioned…oh sweet finally some air-con in here!" Finn was right. From around the corner a welcome chill of cold air could be felt. Unlike the rest of the corridors the brothers had traversed, however, the space where the gentle breeze could be felt from was pitch black.

The rooms they had been through so far had had intermittently flickering lights that highlighted the sheen of sweat that clung to both of them but the room around the corner appeared to emit an eerie blackness that hung in the air and threatened to drown them both. Finn stepped forward to round the corner but Jake stretched him back.

"Dude! What if there's cybermen around the corner? That air-con probably means something and I don't think it's a welcoming break for us. Let's try to find another way around."

"No time, Jake. I can't let them become any stronger than they already are. My job as a hero is to protect Ooo and I bet that breeze means we're getting close to the main computer. It's probably to stop it overheating and busting up and if we find the code we can end this right now." He drew his sword and looked at the yellow canine/lizard. "You in or not?"

"Fine but this is on you." Jake held up his stretchy arms in defeat. Nodding once, the two crept silently forwards towards the edge of the corridor and the turn that the darkness was spilling around from. Jake held up his fingers and mimed.

"3, 2, 1!" The two flung themselves around the bend but were disappointed to what they saw. No computer could be seen. Not much of anything could been seen, really, as the darkness enveloped the room in an impenetrable blanket.

"We got all hyped up for nothing. This sucks. I can't even see my hand in front of my face. Finn waved his non-sword arm around in annoyance. Jake try to find a light switch or something will you? "

"Sure bro. Hang on I think I got it." Jake ran his arms along the smooth steel wall until he found a bump. Flipping the switch they got the shock of their lives. They both froze and didn't care that their feet started to burn from staying too long.

"Dude turn it off quickly!" Finn whispered, not taking his eyes off what could only be described as his greatest fear now that he was no longer afraid of the ocean. Darkness fell once more as Jake needed no further prompting to re-flip the switch. Although they were back under cover of darkness they were still in fear for their lives as, lining the walls behind glass screens, there stood hundreds upon hundreds of cybermen. The two brothers stood hugging each other and preparing for the worst. It didn't come, however, and Finn slowly let his fearful grip on Jake slacken.

"Why haven't they got us yet?" Finn hissed, scared that even the slightest noise would wake them up.

"I don't know, man…maybe they're sleeping?" Jake whispered back.

"They're standing up! And they're robots, I don't think they need to sleep."

"Maybe they're in off mode. Or in standby."

"I hope so because we need to get to the door on the other side." Finn pointed into the inky darkness. When you turned the light on I saw a door at the end. The computer's got to be close."

"I dunno, bro. That door must be at least 300 metres away and the walls are lined with metal dudes who could wake up at any time. We should try to go around a different way so we don't get beat up or worse, killed."

"You know I don't like you using the 'k' word. We can do this." Finn put his sweaty palms to his temples and racked his brains.

_"Come on think brain. What do I know that can help?"_ The voice of Rattleballs came floating back.

"Sometimes to beat your opponent you must think like your opponent. Use what you know about them to unravel them and find an opening."

_"That's good but too general. I need specific things here." _Next princess Bubblegum's explanation came drifting into his mind.

"That energy spike must have taken lots of energy to fire. Why didn't they use it power themselves and sent more cybermen after us?"

_"Good thinking, PB, but there's still something missing."_

"They should have got us easily but why send only 3 units." The Doctor's voice came back clear as day. "Out here on the open plains we should have been overpowered in seconds but why only 3…" Finn was interrupted by his thoughts, or rather his body, being shaken.

"Come on, Finn, talk to me! Come on wake up, buddy, we need to go now!"

"Hmm…mhhuh, what? Jake why're you shaking me?"

"Oh thank Grob!" Jake hugged him again. "I thought you clocked out from heat wave or something. Speaking of clocks we've only got 15 minutes until the Doctor wants us back and the cybermen try to destroy all of Ooo. Have you got a plan or what?" Finn pushed Jake's sweaty body away from his own to try to get some circulation back.

"Yeah I think I've worked it out. Jake, turn the lights on."

"Are you crazy?! They'll definitely see us this time and attack." Jake made a horrified face at Finn which he couldn't see too well in the gloom (which was just as well). "There's got to be at least 500 cybermen just in this one room. No fricking way."

"Jake, we had the lights on way long enough for them to see us before and yet they didn't move an inch. Just trust me and put them back on." He implored. They locked eyes for a few seconds.

"Ok, but get ready to run." Jake slowly extended his arm back up to the wall and located the switch once more. Hesitantly he flipped it and the room was bathed in an eerie glow. Row upon row of cybermen were highlighted behind their glass screens and Finn desperately wanted to run. The cybermen remained motionless, however, and kept looking straight ahead with the same blank expressions.

"I-I don't get it." Jake stuttered. "What's with them? Why aren't they killing us?"

"Remember what The Doctor and Peebles said?" Finn asked.

"Not really."

"They said that if the cybermen had anymore working units they would have already sent them out to take us out back on the grasslands. I don't think these ones are alive, or ever have been. They're just empty shells of nothing, look." He walked up to the nearest one and pulled a silly face.

"Yeah…I guess." Jake was still uneasy. "Come on, bro, these guys are creeping me out." He pulled Finn away from the glass screen where he was making faces and waving his arms around at the occupants. "I don't like the way they're staring at me."

"Jake, they don't even have eyes."

"Yeah but why do I still feel like I'm being watched. Let's just head to the end of this creep-house and go through that door. Even if the computer isn't there it's better than having all of these things just standing here doing jack all and creeping me the math out."

"Alright you win." Finn backed away from the glass. "Lead the way, bro." Jake didn't need to be told twice and listened to the soft 'clinks' and 'clangs' of his feet on the silvery metal floor. Finn followed close behind him whilst periodically checking for movements behind the screens.

_"They're all the same. Every single one. Same arms, same legs, same everything. What do they feel? Why would they do this to themselves? I think I'd die before becoming one of them, but didn't the Doctor say there was no difference? They're already dead. And staring at us with that weird blank look. I think I know what Jake means now about them giving him the creeps."_

"Oh Glob!" Jake froze which caused Finn to bump into him.

"Dude, what is it?!"

"I-I think that one just moved," he yelped.

"Relax they're just dummies. For show or something. Probably just a trick of the light" He said that more for his own benefit than Jake's but his brother seemed to buy it. They were still at least 150 metres from the door and he didn't know if they would make it if they had to run.

"Ye-yeah, prob-probably," Jake said, reassured. They continued walking at a slightly quicker pace. As It was as they entered the final 100 metres that they noticed one of them flex its fingers, slowly. Another turned its head to face them from behind the glass. The two froze. More and more of the cybermen were flexing their fists and turning their empty gazes to the duo until all 500 or so pairs of eyes were fixated on them.

"I don't think that's a trick of the li…"CRASH! Glass exploded behind them as the first of the sleeping army began to wake.

"Dude, run!" Finn yelled to Jake as the other units followed suit and began smashing their fists through the glass. Jake needed no further telling and immediately turned into a cheetah. "Try to open the door!" He heard Finn yell behind him as he sprinted ahead. Luckily the cybermen were slow to start up but that was little consolation to Finn who was getting showered by glass left, right and centre by the awakening army. "Jake hurry up!"

Jake turned from hurriedly working on the door to see Finn running for his life towards him as he twisted away from the numerous metal hands that were trying to grab him.

"It's not budging! "He shouted back. It was true. None of his key hand manipulations were making the door move an inch. He looked helplessly back round to see Finn sprinting at speeds that would have made Usain Bolt proud. That was the good news. The bad news was that the cybermen were now almost completely awake and were chasing Finn at a quick march.

"Finn, I can't open it…I'm sorry," Jake said with a heavy heart. Preparing himself for the worst he closed his eyes.

"Get out of the way!" Jake had a split second to wonder what Finn meant before he was tackled head on by the sprinting teen and was rammed into the door. The force of the impact was so great that the hinges buckled and flung open to let the two tumble into the next room. Their joy was short lived, however, as the cybermen continued to advance towards them at an alarming speed. Finn sprang up off the ground and ran back to the door and tried to close it. It wouldn't and he looked down in horror at what he'd done.

"Jake help he hold this door shut!" He shouted down to the dog who was still lying on the floor. "I busted the hinges and now the door won't lock again. Jake!?" Jake didn't get up. "Jake, no!" Finn sobbed but was snapped out of mourning by the force of the blows that were striking the door from the other side.

"Why do they want to kill us so badly?!" He yelled in frustration with tears flowing freely down his face. He pressed his back to the door and scanned the new room. Not only was there no computer but there was nothing of any sort. The room was completely bare aside from Jake's body and a door on the other side of the room.

Finn thought briefly about running over to it and trying to open it but he knew it was hopeless. It was too far away and if he left the door the cybermen would get in and kill him as well. And that was with Jake's lock picking ability. He looked down at the floor where his brother lay.

_"I'm sorry Jake. I wasn't strong enough to save you. I messed up. Now I'm trapped with no way back and no way forward because of my weakness. Forgive me, brother"_

* * *

**The end? Find out next time!**


	14. United through mutual dislike

Flame princess and Marceline walked (in the latter's case floated) down another one of the many abandoned corridors. Having heard no movements behind them after exiting the TARDIS they assumed that anymore of their companions had taken a different path (there had been several corridors branching out from the room where they'd had landed). As they walked, Flame princess examined the cracks and rubble that littered the floor.

"I can't believe I never noticed this place before. It fell out of the sky from space and I didn't even realise. Some ruler I am," She muttered.

"Don't be too hard on yourself, FP," Marceline comforted her. "I have spiders that crawl into my house all the time and I don't notice them." Flame princess tried to push the repulsive image from her mind and changed the subject.

"So you're a vampire then?"

"Way to be blunt." Marceline sighed. "Yeah I guess I am."

"So how does that work then? How come I don't burn you when I touch you?"

"Are you planning on touching me?"

"Oh Glob no, you know what I mean!" Flame princess jumped back at the insinuation.

"Well it's not really something that works as something I am. Observe." She snapped her long, grey fingers and a ball of fire appeared. Flame princess gasped. Noticing her look, Marceline dissipated the fire. "What you thought only fire elementals can have pyro-kinesis?" Bonnibel may not be right on a lot of things but I think she's right when she says you're naïve."

"Hey I can hold my own!" Flame princess flared up. "Bubblegum doesn't know everything!"

"Don't worry I know that done the line you're good to go. I know first-hand that she can be wrong about a lot of things," Marceline told her.

"Yeah…she can..." They continued in silence through the maze of identical passageways. Although the pair hadn't been as lucky as Finn and Jake to have lights (even if they did flicker), Flame princess's gentle glow took care of that problem.

Another thing the duo had over Finn and Jake was their ability to deal with the oppressive heat. Having lived in the fire kingdom all her life and basically being made of fire, Flame princess had no trouble but was surprised to see that the vampire queen was having no more trouble with the heat than she was.

"Hey Marceline…why aren't you sweating?" She asked.

"I don't really need to." She replied offhandedly. Her face grew thoughtful. "Actually I don't even know if I can anymore. My tear ducts have pretty much dried up and my blood flow is non-existent at best; who needs sweat?!"

"Well Finn does and I bet Jake and Bubblegum do to." She reasoned.

"Oh Finn and Jake do for sure, it's way too salty, though, to be tasty…"

"Wait what did you…?" Flame princess started at this disgusting revelation.

"Bonnie's is all sugary though, much nicer. Actually I wouldn't be surprised in this heat if she hasn't melted, being made of candy and what not."

"Um, yeah…yeah I guess." Flame princess tried to guess if Marceline was joking about the whole 'sweat taste' thing. Eager to change the subject she turned to the one subject Marceline had dreaded.

"So what's the deal with you and Bubblegum, then?" She asked innocently. "You know why I, after all this time, have certain…cause to distrust her but what's your story with her?"

"It's a long story, kid" She sighed.

"Hey I'm not a kid, alright?!" Flame princess stated indignantly. "I've been running my own kingdom for two years now and you only look about 17 or 18? We're roughly the same age."

"I'm over 1000." Marceline stated bluntly.

"Whaaa…?"

"Oh I guess that never came up in conversation."

"No! No it didn't!" She stammered. "How do you look so young?"

"Vampire."

"How did I know you were going to say that? Anyhow that means you've only known princess Bubblegum for a maximum of, what, 18 years?" Noting the look Marceline was giving her she raised her fist up in annoyance. "Seriously?"

"Yep. She's closer to 800 then to 18. I've known her a long time."

"Well she's not a vampire, so how does she look so young?"

"No idea," the vampire exhaled slowly. "Maybe it's part of her bio…how do you say that science word she uses. Bio…biology that's it. I'm not clear on the details but I bet the Doctor would know."

"How would he…oh come on! Really?!" Flame princess said, exasperated.

"Yep. He's even older than me at 1108."

"But he looks around 20 or 30. How does he look so young?"

"Maybe he uses skin lotion?" They both laughed which echoed around the empty corridors.

"But seriously? Am I the only one who looks like their real age?" Flame princess asked. "Is Finn hundreds of years old as well?"

"Nah, he's all yours princess." She joked.

"Hey you know what I meant!" She said half-heartedly, but secretly grateful that her old boyfriend wasn't a centuries old crone.

_"I guess that gives us another chance together. Wait, what did I just say? No it can't work, not ever. He lied to my face and took everything I loved and stood on it. But he apologized. I know he's truly sorry for what he did and kicks himself daily about it. Why do I feel…no, stop it. He's gone."_

"Anyway what is it with you and the princess?" Flame princess dragged herself away from her own thoughts. "She locked me up for 15 years of my life. That's a reason to dislike someone, even if they had good reason which was debatable. What's your reason?

_"15 years locked up? Try centuries. Centuries where she won't even look you in the eye let alone talk to you and goes out of her way to avoid you. Your prison was physical but mine was mental. She shut me out completely and left me with a hole in my heart."_

"I told you it's a long story." She reiterated. Flame princess gestured with her hands to the vast expanse of corridor as they rounded yet another corner.

"Well these pathways aren't getting any shorter." It was an innocent enough request but one that invited warmth and confidence which Marceline eventually decided to give into.

"A long time ago we were…friends." She said the word 'friend' hesitantly as to this day she didn't really know what kind of relationship they'd had. They had done stuff regular friends would do such as watch movies and play sport but it always felt like more than that. Sure they'd fooled around a couple of times with the lights out but nothing ever came of it and, if anything, it just made their arguments and fights more harsh and intense.

"You were friends with her? No way?!" Flame princess said incredulously.

"If friend is the right word, then yeah I guess." Marceline shifted her gaze to the floor. "She was there for me in the dark times of my life. The only one I could talk to for hundreds of years and talked me out of doing things to myself I don't really want to talk about."

"Oh I'm sorry I didn't realise…" Flame princess started.

"No it's cool…it's fine. All in the past now. Anyway…" the vampire continued, "we both said some things that we shouldn't have and to be honest I don't even remember most of it. Something about her 'being perfect' and me 'not meaning anything' to her." She mimed the quotation marks in the air.

"After the worst one I told her…I told her something I can't even remember but I just remember her face. Full of pain at what I'd said. She told me we were done and we never saw each other again for years. We tried to make amends but we always kept getting worked up over the small things and arguing so we decided to call it quits. Forever."

"Why that little…I always knew she was bad but that's just awful." Flame princess sympathised. "Do you want me to beat her up for you or something?"

"What?! No I just…I want it to end. No use trying to beat her up when it's just as much my fault as hers. It takes two people to break up a relationship not just one."

_"Is that true? Does it take two people to ruin something? It was Finn's fault we broke up but I didn't listen to his explanation. I shut him out and never let him tell me why he'd done it. Something about the cosmic owl but I ran off before he could tell me. Maybe it was both our faults?" _Silence reigned once more as the two walked one in a depressed mood, both thinking about the relationships they'd had and where it all went wrong.

It wasn't a nice silence either. It was one that invaded their personal space and made it awkward between them. They turned their eyes away from each other and instead focused on the labyrinth of corridors before them. It wasn't long before there was a branch in their current path that lead in two separate directions.

"Left one/right one!" They said at the same time. Not wanting anymore bad silence between them Flame princess sought to settle the dispute with her power. Using her heat sense she spun a few times on the spot and a wave of heat shimmered off her being.

"Huh…I guess you were right, it was the left one." She murmured. "Don't tell me…"

"Vampire sense."

"Knew it." They set off down the slightly narrower left path at a quicker pace than they had before, not due to the problem of their feet getting burned (as although Flame princess was barefoot she was still made of fire and Marceline not even touching the ground) but because they got the feeling they were running out of time. Neither of them wore a watch (_what am I a nerd? _thought Marceline) but knew they'd been walking for quite some time.

"Hey Marceline…," Flame princess asked after another claustrophobic silence.

"Hm, speak," she replied inattentively.

"Do you think we can do it? Defeat the cybermen I mean."

"Why're you asking me? The Doctor's the one with all the answers."

"I barely know him," Flame princess hesitated. "I need someone I can trust."

"You barely know me either and believe me you don't want to."

"Why would you say that?" Marceline rounded on her.

"Look at me!" She yelled. The outburst echoed down the endless corridors and caught the fiery ruler off guard. "I'm 1000 years old and I'm dangerous! Everyone I care about I either hurt and push away from me or I outlive and watch them crumble into dust. I wake up every day knowing that one day it'll just be me. All the people I care about will be dead and gone and there's nothing I can do about it so don't think you can know me. You will never ever know what it is like having to watch that happen around you. Don't get near to me and don't trust me. Bonnibel's right…I'm…I'm a monster…"

Even after centuries of practice she still couldn't control her tears and they began to slowly roll down her cheeks and splash down into the dust on the floor below. Flame princess was dumbstruck. Her earlier question of success paled in contrast to the significance of the words she just heard.

Clearly this was deep, personal stuff she didn't give out easily and yet the vampire queen had poured out her soul to her. Flame princess felt like she'd violated and intruded into something that she wasn't supposed to see but wanted to help all the same. But how?

_"I can't talk to her after that. I don't have the right. I can't possibly relate or even begin to understand how painful that must be for her. I can barely get over one human boy and yet she's had to do it over and over again in an endless cycle of pain. If only there was some way I could comfort her, connect to her even. But I don't have the know-how on that. I can barely run my own kingdom. There's got to be someone who has the…"_

"The Doctor!" She slapped herself for not thinking of him sooner.

"Hm?" Marceline made an effort to conceal her tears, unsuccessfully.

"You said the Doctor's over 1000 as well. I bet he can help you…" Marceline thought back to being in the TARDIS with the enigmatic stranger. Originally she had thought the same; that he could help her with her problems but she soon came to realise how foolish that had been_. _

_"Even with the Doctor's experience I'm still going to outlive him so there's no point in asking him anything."_

"Help me do what? You said yourself that he doesn't know everything."

"Oh yeah!" It was Flame princess's turn to get angry. "Well maybe he could teach you some self-control!' Her flames started to rise again.

"What?"

"Come on Marceline we're in the middle of a combat zone here, in enemy territory. You can get all sentimental and mope around later but right now there are people counting on us. Now I'm sorry that you're upset and I can't begin to understand how that must feel but I will not let you stand around wasting time and put your own needs before the needs of every man, woman and child in Ooo! Do I make myself clear?!" While outwardly her face has demonic and stoic, inwardly she was on red alert. The tension hung in the air. Had she overstepped the mark, gone too far?

"…You're right…I'm sorry. Just another one of my many faults. I need to put other people before myself and not the other way around. Thanks for reminding me what we're here to do. Save the world." Flame princess let out a sigh of relief. She hadn't known if Marceline would have understood the 'cruel to be kind' approach but was glad that it had worked out.

"No problem. Being the ruler of the fire kingdom has taught me to understand and help others just as I myself was once helped."

"By Finn?" The vampire queried with a raised eyebrow.

"…Yes, by Finn." She said slowly. "Finn…"

"Oh hey a door!" Both were secretly relieved at a diversion from their current conversation; they'd been so caught up in personal discussion that they hadn't even seen the door until they'd practically run into it. It looked like it had survived the worst of the crash and its silvery, metallic lustre was testament to that. A faint humming sound could be heard from behind it that beckoned them to come closer.

"I think…I think we found it. We found the computer!" Marceline punched the air. "And we did it without any help from that know-it-all Bubblegum. High five sister!" She raised her hand high which Flame princess hesitantly fived (not having the 'high five' in the fire kingdom).

"Yeah but we don't even know if it is the computer. All I hear is humming."

"Come on use your head, FP!" Marceline snorted. "This place is a dump so what else are they going to be powering? A hotdog stand?"

"I suppose so but neither of us will know what to do when we get in there. We don't use computers so much in the fire kingdom and you don't seem to be the tech type. We might need princess Bubblegum after all."

"Don't be a weenie," Marceline laughed which slightly vexed Flame princess. "I'm not going to that spoilsport brain-lord for help. You have little faith in my…"

"Don't say it!" Warned Flame princess.

"…Vampire powers," she finished.

"Argh!" Flame princess tried to pull her hair in frustration but her hands just passed through it. "You can't solve everything with your vampire powers. They allow you to transform and stuff, not operate heavy machinery with your mind!"

"How do you know?"

"Well uh…I don't really…"

"Exactly," Marceline said bluntly. "I'm pre Mushroom war, remember? I know a thing or two about computers. Just step back and watch me fiddle around with it until something cool happens, yeah?"

"That doesn't sound very sensib…"

"Quiet now I'm trying to open this door so hush." Flame princess didn't like being told what to do, especially when she could help.

"How's that going to work? I can just blast it open with my fire."

"Usually I'm all up for the violent destruction angle but we don't want to risk damaging the computer."

"…Yeah alright. I still don't see how vampire powers can open the door," she folded her arms.

"Who said anything about vampire powers?" The vampire pulled out a strange looking guitar. 'I'm going to music this door open, baby! Rock on!" She flipped around in the air.

"This is no time for a musical interlude, Marceline," Flame princess put her hands on her hips.

"No really this'll work," she insisted. "If I play my axe bass at just the right frequency I can vibrate the lock so it'll open and you don't have to get all flamey on me.

"That sounds way too scientific for you to have come up with that. Did Bubblegum explain it to you or what?" Flame princess still wasn't convinced.

"No I got the idea from this pre-Mushroom war film. I think it was called 'Johnny English' or something lame like that. Movie bummed me out but the trick with doors still works fine. Got me out of tight situations before." Before Flame princess could ask what kind of situations that warranted escape using a guitar to open locks, Marceline began to attempt to open the lock. It was a slow, mournful tune that pierced through the silence and heat alike.

**_"I thought that maybe, just maybe we were friends,_**

**_Together through sickness, health and freedom to the end._**

**_But I was wrong oh so wrong, Bubblegum…,_**

**_You used me, played me, hurt me but did you care?_**

**_Now I'm all alone with reminders everywhere._**

**_Reminding me of you and the good times that we shared,_**

**_Now I'm alone again, forever, and I'm scared._**

**_Oh how I wish it was all your fault; it'd be easy,_**

**_But I can't lie, not to myself…not ever, not really._**

**_I know that in my heart it was just as much me…as you,_**

**_And I'm sorry for all the things I said that weren't true,_**

**_And I just think that maybe, to live…I need you."_**

With the last strum of her fingers across the bass, the lock clicked and the door swung open. Flame princess was touched by the lyrics and wondered if she had it all wrong.

"Marceline…I never knew…"

"Save it," she replied shortly, her voice held no emotion whatsoever. "I did my job and it worked. The door's open isn't it?"

"I just didn't think that…"

"Tell no one of this. No one can know, especially not Bubblegum."

"Marceline we're in the fire kingdom." Flame princess said meekly. "You know I can't lie." Marceline carefully put her bass away then suddenly slammed her fist into the wall.

"I don't care about your stupid policy!" Her voice was icy and cold. "People have got hurt because of it and I don't want to end up on that list. Some secrets are best left untold, understand? No one can know."

"…Alright…I understand." It was against Flame princess's better judgement but after what had happened in the throne room she was beginning to understand the importance of secrets. They could protect an individual from harm and hadn't that been the point of the policy in the first place?

"Thank you, it means a lot." Marceline's rage had vanished and been replaced with gratitude.

"No problem. Let's take a look in here shall we?" In the aftermath of the song they'd been so wrapped up that they hadn't even noticed that the door had unlocked and swung open. They peered into the glow. The only light source was that from an enormous screen on the far wall. Surrounding it were numerous buttons and switches that rivalled the TARDIS in quantity.

"That's it! That must be the main computer!" Marceline was all business like now.

"What makes you so sure?"

"No idea," was the reply. "It's a computer and it's big. I don't see the problem." Flame princess nodded at this but froze when a voice which wasn't Marceline's replied.

"No. No problem at all." A blast of energy was fired from the shadows and struck Marceline square in the chest, sending her flying across the room and slamming into the wall. "In fact, Flame princess, you're just the thing we need."

"Marceline, no!" She tried to rush over to the fallen girl to see if she was alright but was struck by an electrical current, and found herself unable to move. "Who are you?!" She demanded with lava like tears streaming down her cheeks. "How do you know my name?! What do you want?!"

"Oh we've waited so long for this day." The voice replied. It didn't sound low enough for a cyberman but had an unmistakeable metallic edge to it. "You should thank us, ruler of the fire kingdom, for knowing you were a part of this."

"A...A part? A part of what?"

"The future, my dear. The rise of the cybermen."

* * *

**A/N: the mystery deepens! I had a criminal amount of fun writing this and (unless someone here is psychic) the song Marceline sings to open the door is my own creation. I couldn't find one that reflected her thoughts well enough so I wrote my own to cover it. **

**The next chapter will finally reveal the owner of the voice and some key points of the story so stay tuned for next tuesday!**

**(I haven't forgotten about Finn and Jake's dilemma either and will be addressed in an upcoming chapter)**

**(In the adventure time comics, Marceline shows skill with computers so that's why she says all that stuff to FP)**


	15. The leader of the army

Footsteps echoed down the dusty corridor. Princess Bubblegum slowly trudged down another empty looking hallway, not even bothering to observe the crash damage anymore. She knew that she was on a timescale but the insufferable heat was beginning to get to her. Beads of sugary sweat slowly dripped down her pink complexion (which a certain vampire would no doubt love to drink up, she thought). Her coat wasn't helping matters either, as it was heavy duty and designed for durability, not desert trekking.

"Princess, why're you crying?" A small voice asked. Bubblegum raised her hand to her eye and felt. She hadn't even realised.

"Oh it's nothing, BMO, don't worry." She tried to reassure him.

"Princess, I may be a robot but I am not stupid. I am like the cybermen as it is within my capacity to learn. Spending time with Finn and Jake has taught me all about real people's behaviour. I know all is not well and you can tell me. I want to help." Bubblegum was surprised by the little robot's words. She had never really considered BMO a thinking robot but maybe she was wrong.

"Back there in the TARDIS I knew they were going to leave me, which was my plan. I just didn't realise how easy it was for them to do that. Marceline just left me without another word and didn't even say goodbye. Do I mean that little to her?"

"No candy princess, you mean a lot to her. She misses being your friend."

"That's not possible." She sighed. "I bunked that all up years ago and never had the guts to apologize. How can you think she wants me back?"

"Even I, as a robot, can see it. The way she acts around you…"

"A total butt!"

"Because she's afraid of admitting her true feelings. She's scared that you haven't forgiven her and you'll reject her again. She plays it cool and jerky to cover up her loneliness."

"But she's always played it cool and jerky. Right from the day I met her."

"My point is still valid, princess." She looked down at the little machine she was carrying.

"…You think that she's always been lonely? Marceline has lots of friends. She talks about them all the time."

"Have you met any of them?" BMO queried.

"Well…no but that doesn't mean they aren't real," she started.

"From the time I spend watching the vampire lady I never see anyone other than herself in her house. She never invites her friends over…because she doesn't believe she has any."

"Wait how do you know this? Do you spy on her?"

"When Jake visits Lady and Finn goes adventuring I get bored. Even robots get bored and, besides, Finn told me that she'd even written a song about how she has no friends."

"How did he…"

"He hid in her closet one time."

"Oh. After all this time I thought she was well off. All those times I tried to invite her to the biennial Bubblegum ball and I thought she was out partying with her own friends. And she was alone…because of me. I should have been there for her, like she was for me. I'm a terrible person."

"No, princess, you are not a bad person. You just need to recognise when people need you the most."

"You sound like the Doctor," she laughed, wiping away her tears and sweat. "For a robot you're very insightful. Thank you BMO."

"Oh it's nothing, candy lady. Now enough chat we have an important job to do."

"You're right. We need to stay focused on the problem at hand. The Doctor is depending on me to get that code and I promised I wouldn't fail. I should have royal promised, that would have made me more alert instead of wallowing in my own self-pity." She scanned the architecture. "I don't think we're too close to the main computer judging by the internal layout so I might as well learn as much as I can about the TARDIS. BMO have you still got the emergency protocol data logged into your circuits?"

"Yes, princess. Beemo has the data."

"Good. Read out them out. It'll pass the time until we find the computer and might be useful about learning more about the Doctor." As much as she knew about the mysterious traveller she knew his true intentions could possibly be reflected in the programs in his machine, allowing her a look into his inner workings.

"Of course. The emergency program directive's functions are as follows:

_1.__All occupants of the TARDIS will be transported back to their planet of origin. The danger of the situation has deemed this action necessary._

_2.__The occupants of the TARDIS will have their time streams suspended and looped until help can be acquired. Use only when TARDIS itself presents a danger by internal fault._

_3.__The TARDIS will return to its last physical location in order to survive an attack or enemy that should not get their hands on the unit. It will dematerialize with or without passengers. _

_4.__The TARDIS engines will power down and all non-vital systems will cease. This action protects the occupants of the capsule by ensuring enemy scanners will be unable to detect the capsule while powered down. The engines will also power down if the TARDIS becomes empty at any point._

_5.__If the TARDIS systems are damaged and occupants are deemed trapped within then the TARDIS will duplicate the main control room in order to protect them. The circular design of the main control room makes it the safest room for passengers._

_6.__The TARDIS will materialise in the nearest safe space-time location. In extreme cases the TARDIS may materialise within itself to protect passengers._

_7.__The TARDIS will materialise around the user of a device designed to summon the TARDIS to them. Devices may be either Huon based to magnetise the remnants in the heart of the TARDIS or generic distress signals operating on the right wavelength._

_8.__The TARDIS will create a time freeze around a potentially dangerous machine failure to prevent injury to passengers. This embargo can only be temporary until problem is fixed._

_9.__The TARDIS will self-destruct. Only activated when no other variables can be considered._

"These are the main emergency protocols in position, princess." BMO paused. "There are also several minor ones for different, less dangerous scenarios. Would you like me to continue?"

"No, no I think I've heard enough to make a decision." She concluded.

"Decision, princess?"

"I was just seeing if I could learn more about him, the Doctor, I mean. These protocols only confirm what I already thought; all of the commands centre around protecting the passengers which shows me that he sincerely cares about his friends. He designed at least 9 different systems to protect people who he barely knows and if that's not genuine compassion then I don't know what is."

"Then why do you still have doubts?" BMO asked.

"Why would you think I have doubts?"

"Robot, not stupid," BMO gave a poker face.

"Oh…sorry. It's just there's still something about him something I can't quite place. Still…" she dropped her pensive act and continued onward through the corridors, wiping a sweaty hand on the back of her coat. "We've still got a job to do whether the Doctor's involved or not. Onwards for science!"

"Um what?"

"Nothing, nothing," she added quickly. She continued in longer paces than before down the corridors, the considerably longer strides reflecting her inner turmoil of the Doctor's true feelings put to rest by the nature of his emergency programs.

After some time, the pink princess wasn't sure if it was heat haze but she could have sworn all the passageways were starting to look the same. Every time she turned the corner she was back at the start. Looking left and right, then back to the left. It was all the same. Her stomach was threatening to give up all of the Doctor's delicious omelette and she was becoming dizzy. Being a person made of living candy she didn't respond too well to the prolonged heat and slowly, but surely, was beginning to melt.

"Oh, BMO." She said weakly. "I think I'm going to take a little lie down…this heat…it's too much for me. You take over the search." Her footing became unsteady and she began to sway.

"No, princess!" BMO's little tugs on her arm went unheeded. "Remember we have a job. What about the cybermen?!"

"…I'm sure Finn's got it all under…under control. He…won't mind…if I take…a little snooze just here." Bubblegum began to slump against the dusty metal wall where her hair began to melt and fuse together. "I…was wrong. This coat is really…really comfortable. Night, BMO…sleep well." Her eyes began to droop shut.

"No!" The little robot tried to shake the candy princess awake but was far too small to have any impact. "Candy princess you must wake up, you must! Your friends need you! Princess?!" Just as all hope seemed to be lost, a scream echoed through the corridor. It sounded close and Bubblegum's eyelids fluttered open.

_"That sounded like…oh no. Flame princess!"_ It was as if an electric charge had been run through her body. The princess sprang up, her hair making angry suction noises at being pulled away from the wall. All her heat induced fatigue had vanished and been replaced by anger induced drive.

_"She sounded close." _She bunched her fists. _"I swear I will level the person who drew that out of her. I'm going to make them pay. And where's Marceline? Shouldn't she be there with her? I'm she did this I will flip out so hard I'm going to…no time for threats…what if she's hurt? I can't waste any more time." _Bubblegum scooped up BMO and ran with new determination in the direction the scream had emanated from, disregarding the intense effort from running in the near unbearable heat.

_"But it is bearable. To save my friend anything is bearable."_ She wasn't sure if that was her own logic or one of the Doctor's many quips but it still spurred her on none the less. Following the maze like corridors twisting and turning going left, right and left again until she was confronted by a hatch in the wall.

"Some sort of service hatch," she muttered. "The scream definitely came from behind this." As if on cue another scream could be heard, a lot closer now, which chilled the blood in Bubblegum's veins. In her fatigued state she could have misheard who the scream belonged to but, now full of adrenaline, there was no mistaking the owner. Flame princess.

"Hold on, Flame princess!" Bubblegum shouted back and fumbled with her sonic candycane. Eventually (in reality it was only seconds but Bubblegum knew it was the difference between life and death) she found the right setting and hastily traced the outline of the hatch. Working quickly she pulled off the security panel she'd disabled and without another thought dived through.

It was roughly the same width as the pink princess's thighs and progress was slow. She was trying very hard indeed to ignore the pain of her soft candy skin melting against the hot metal interior, and tried to press forwards. From the outside the hatch was deceptively big but on the inside it was tight. Very tight. And it only got tighter and narrower as Bubblegum tried to shuffle forwards.

After only a few seconds it became too narrow for her to shuffle through and her hips wedged themselves. Gritting her teeth through the agony of the burning sensation, she tried in vain to shuffle forwards but her body was stuck fast.

"Come on!" She cried in frustration. She was so close to saving Flame princess but her chance was slipping through her fingers. The struggling she heard at the other end of the tunnel had died down and the room was silent once more.

"No I won't let you down!" She yelled, and increased her wiggling in an attempt to break free. "I. Will. Not. Be. Beaten!" Her breaths came in ragged gasps from the effort but eventually (again only a few seconds in real time) dislodged herself and sprawled out into the room. Checking BMO was still ok in her arms she stood up, which was now considerably more painful than before she entered the hatch.

Her first thought was her entrance wasn't them main one and looked around to the left and saw a metallic door that had been thrown open. That wasn't the thing that made her heart wrench. On the floor by the door, sprawled out and still, was Marceline.

"No!" She cried, ran over and then knelt by her fallen companion. "It can't be. Why, Glob, why?!" The princess put her hand on the vampire queen's neck to check her pulse. Nothing.

"As you can see, princess, this is what happens when you stand in the way of progress." A cold voice said. She spun around on the floor, tears still streaming from her loss.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" She demanded through the tears.

"No princess. You don't get to decide what I can and can't do anymore. This time it's my turn." The figure never-the-less stepped out from the shadows and revealed themselves. Princess Bubblegum was so surprised, so shocked, that she stopped crying completely.

"Y-you!" Was the only thing she could say.

"Surprised to see me, your highness?" The voice mocked, and it belonged to none other than Peppermint butler. Or what was left of him. The entire left side of his body had been replaced by metallic components and where his eye should have been lay only darkness. His voice was not that of Peppermint butler either but a cold, synthetic, near metallic one that wasn't quite that of a cyberman but closely resembled it.

"What…what happened to you?" Bubblegum trembled at the hideous transformation that had overcome him.

"Stop pretending to care about me!" He spat. "You treated me like a slave for hundreds of years and never once batted an eye. You never once gave a damn about how I felt and you locking yourself in that accursed lab of yours for 7 months was the last straw." He raised his arm and Bubblegum could see it had been transformed into some sort of cannon.

"Just expecting me to run the entire kingdom for you while you played with your chemistry set. No warning, no nothing…just nothing. One day you vanish into your lab and the next thing I know I'm being given instructions over the intercom on how to do your job." His voice rose. "The intercom of all things! Not even having the decency to tell me to my face that I'm being landed with a living hell of a job. I've had enough and now it's my turn."

"By what? Joining the cybermen? They're evil!" She sprang to her feet and raised her fist to him which he simply laughed at. It was a strange laugh of metal scarping across stone.

"No, no, my dear ruler, the cybermen are visionaries. They've offered me so much and I've seen their future and it's brilliant."

"Millions will die!" She yelled. "All of Ooo will become brainless creatures that lack any sort of creativity or morals. The whole world will simply stop!"

"And it'll be brilliant." He laughed again. "All the stupid and humiliating tasks you had me do will become redundant. The whole place will practically run itself and I'll be able to sit back and enjoy myself for once, unlike when you governed me."

"I…I'm sorry you feel that way." She spread her arms apart. "If you'd just have talked to me I could have…"

"Save it you witch! You had your chance but you were always too busy to listen to me. Now I'm going to have my fun by destroying all the people you care about, starting with Finn." Her heart faltered.

"No stop I'll do anything, just don't hurt him!" She pleaded, secretly taking out her sonic candycane from behind her back.

"Too late, princess. About 300 years too late."

"It's never too late. Your fired, butler." She whipped out the candycane and pressed the button, causing Peppermint to cringe in pain. He held his head in his hands for a moment and when he was done he slowly stood back upright.

"Princess…" The voice was Peppermint butler's, not cyber enhanced Peppermint but his normal voice, contorted in pain. "You…haven't got…much time." Peppermint stumbled over the main computer which Bubblegum only just now noticed. "The red button…the downloader code…for the emotional inhibi...UPGRADE IN PROGRESS!" Peppermint threw his head back in anger.

"Arggh why won't he stay down?! He seethed.

"What just happened? I heard Peppermint, the real one before you silenced him."

"Ah yes." The cyber Peppermint grinned lopsidedly. "These cybernetic implants are supposed to suppress my old self and my moral codes with him. However due to my demonic nature I guess I can still break through, but not anymore. Upgrading is brilliant I must say."

_"Peppermint butler, the real one…my one…is still inside this…thing. After all this time he's still fighting…for me. I need to reach out to him again. He told me how to download the code to disrupt the emotional inhibitors and I can't just leave him trapped in the mind of a madman. If only I could…"_

"Am I boring you, princess?" Peppermint appeared to have regained full control over his body once more and was scrutinizing the candy princess.

"No, no carry on," she lied hastily.

"Hmm I'm not convinced and I know just the way to wake you up. Oh Flame princess!" He called into the darkness.

"What have you done to her you freak?!" She yelled in fury at him.

"Nothing at all. In fact she's the most integral part of the cybermen's plan. Hey you should give yourself a pat on the back for delivering her so nicely to us." His laugh was really starting to get on Bubblegum's nerves.

"Wakey-wakey Flame princess!" Cyber Peppermint pressed a button below the monitor and the whole back of the room that had previously lay in darkness was lit up. In the centre of the room was an unconscious Flame princess that was sealed inside a cylindrical cell that had wires and tubes running in and out of it. Bubblegum's mouth hit the floor.

"Flame princess! Flame princess can you hear me?! Are you alright?!" She shouted but the orange girl gave no indication of hearing her and continued to lie unconscious on the floor.

"Don't worry she's fine, for now." Peppermint reassured her. She ignored the remark and studied the apparatus that held flame princess more closely.

"It can't be…" She murmured. "That looks like…"

"A cybertronic energy generator!" Peppermint squealed in delirious joy. "Welcome to the cybermen's secret weapon!"

* * *

**A/N thanks again for all you guys support and feel free to tell me what you think so far. **


	16. Energy crisis

"But you can't!" Exclaimed Bubblegum. "You'll drain all her life force! You'll kill her!"

"And give birth to so much more." Peppermint countered. "All of the sleeping cybermen will awaken and it will be a joyous day.

"That's not giving birth!" She shouted. "Those **things **aren't even alive! It's murder!"

"Since when has that stopped you, oh great one." He jeered. "The ends has always justified the means when it suited you. If the candy citizens knew that their brothers were being stolen away in the dark and having experiments performed on them, there'd be rebellion overnight." Bubblegum couldn't say anything; Peppermint had picked at her deepest wound.

"That was a very long time ago." She said in a small voice. "Hundreds and hundreds of years back when I was first building the candy kingdom. I…I didn't know any better…but I got better..."

"Save it, hypocrite," he butted in. "I don't want to re-hear all the excuses you told me." He raised the pitch of his voice to imitate her. _"It's all for the good of science Peps." _He mimicked. "All those years you forced me to keep silent about the abductions to fuel your nightmare experiments."

"I…I was just trying to help. To make people better! I know what I did was wrong and I've never forgiven myself for the things I did. I still have nightmares about the stuff that I did even today but I didn't know any other way. If Billy hadn't found me when he did…"

"I SAID SAVE IT!" He raged. "Now I'm going to make you watch like you did to me all those years ago while I suck the life from your friend here and use the energy to obliterate everyone you care about."

"You…you sick, sick man." She yelled at him. "Why her?! What's so important about her?! There's easily enough thermal energy stored in the surrounding rocks to power all the cybermen and more. "You don't need her so let her go!" Her voice was starting to crack.

"Oh no has the scientist still not figured it out?" Mocked Peppermint. "Did the Doctor not tell you? The sly devil, always omitting key parts of his plans and manipulating others to get what he wants."

"S-stop it! He couldn't have known this would happen!" Bubblegum didn't sound sure of herself.

"Oh believe me he knew. Just think about it." Peppermint was clearly enjoying this. "Why would we only send out 3 units when we had enough energy stored up to rip you out of the sky? You asked him and he brushed it off. He knew our plan but he let it happen."

"You're lying!" She shouted. "You weren't even there when we said that."

"Even after destruction of the head, the cyber unit still transmits an audio link. I had fun listening to you all run about getting sweaty while I sat back here in the comfort of this room." He smiled at the memory. "But I digress. Why do you think we didn't send more units when we had the power? And why are we draining your friend to power ourselves instead?"

"I don't know! Why are you even telling me this?! Giving away your plan?"

"I want you to know where you stand. No matter what you know or what you do we will win. You will become like us. All hail the cybermen!" He placed his cannon arm across his chest in a display of allegiance.

"You're insane!" Bubblegum said. "You're not the real peppermint butler I know. What have you done to him?"

"Who me? You can call me the cyber planner." He grinned crookedly. "I suppose the other guy's still in here somewhere but he's nearly gone. I'll eradicate every last piece of him and use his body to upgrade the universe. I will…you distracted me." His smile vanished." Heh, heh, stalling me won't help you. In fact it'll only make it easier for me to get rid of you. But before that you haven't answered my question. Why do we need her?" He pointed as best he could to the still unconscious Flame princess.

"I don't know!" Bubblegum pulled at her hair in a fit of rage/desperation. "You have more than enough power in the surrounding earth to power a nuclear power station for years. Your usage of a gravity spike confirms that. Why can't you use it to power the cybermen? What's the difference?" She racked her brains.

_"One's a machine and the other's a part machine, part living organism. Is that the difference? Maybe they need…."_

"I'm such an idiot!" The realisation dawned on her. The cyber planner clapped his hands in mock approval.

"Well done, princess. You finally understand our problem."

"Yes I should have seen it sooner. The energy isn't compatible is it?" There was silence so she continued. "It's like trying to send a ball flying using electrical energy instead of kinetic. You can power a machine like the gravity cannon because it's just technology but you can't use it to power the cybermen because it's in the wrong form. The pure thermal energy is no use to their part organic nature. That's why you need Flame princess."

"Ever the science freak eh, princess." The cyber planner said. "Yes the vast quantities of thermal energy surrounding this hell-hole is no good but Flame princess…she's perfect. The perfect combination of fire and life; a fire elemental whose organic matter and life energy fused with thermal is the perfect thing to raise the army…which is why we're going to drain her dry and use it to power ourselves."

_"I can't let him kill Flame princess like that. Apart from anything I won't lose her twice. Leaving her with that psychotic father of hers was killing her once. I can't do it again." _Bubblegum thought. Knowing that she could never persuade the cyber planner to stop of his own accord she tried to play for time to see if the real peppermint could take back over and help her.

"That still doesn't prove that the Doctor knew about this but still sent her willingly anyway." She tried.

"Oh give it a rest, Bonnibel," He said. She flinched when he used her name; only those close to her could use it and not even Finn dared to. "You know how clever the Doctor is," he continued. "You've seen first-hand how intelligent he can be and how quickly he analyses situations. You can't seriously think he didn't work it out. I think he knew as soon as we fired the cannon and didn't follow it up with man, or should I say, cyberman power."

"You…you don't know what you're talking about. He…he would never knowingly endanger the lives of the innocent." She defended him but inwardly knew how clever he really was. He must have known what the situation was…but why still allow Flame princess to go? It made no sense.

"You know it to be true and yet you can't quite accept it. Perhaps I'll persuade you otherwise." Cyber planner/ Peppermint turned around and flicked a switch on the console which caused the room length monitor on the back wall to spring to life. On it there was a man. He looked old enough to be a grandfather and wore a dark sort of cloak. Bubblegum had never seen him before but somehow knew he was the Doctor.

"See how the Doctor runs, runs and picks up people out of their lives without a thought to wellbeing for his own amusement." The screen flicked to a slightly younger man with a bowtie and flute like instrument. "Playing the fool and yet inwardly has masterminded the deaths of the innocent." The scene changed to a man with silver hair and a plush suit. "The man who pretends to abhor violence and yet strikes others down with the force of a raging volcano."

The image faded and a man with a hat and absurdly long scarf came into view. "The clown who abandoned his friends without a thought to their welfare took off to see the universe." A much younger man took the stage, complete with a green plant like organism Bubblegum couldn't identify.

"Pretending to be a team player and helping others while secretly planning their downfall with a sliver of ice in his heart." A taller man with an explosion of colour for a coat faded in. "Now not even trying to restrain his inner urges, he leapt into the fray and went out of his way to use violence to get what he wanted."

A man with an umbrella shifted into view. "Manipulating the people he pretends to care about with no endgame in mind, just doing it for his own pleasure." A man with a haggard yet strangely handsome appearance came next. "Going out of his way to not help when other's needed him the most, and when he did it was far too late."

A figure with indescribable features came next and sent a shiver down Bubblegum's spine. She knew who this one was. "Murdering millions of innocent lives and even influencing people to take their own, his rage lead to genocide and extinction." A man with hardened features and black leather coat stepped up on screen. "An ignorant fool who selfishly endangered the life of another to try to help him forget all the things he had done."

Next a man with spiked up hair and a brown suit came into view. Bubblegum recognised him too. "Throwing away his friends life out of fear and ruining the lives of two others on a rebound. In the end he thought of himself as a God." Lastly an even more familiar face faded into view.

The bowtie and tweed was back but his smile wasn't; His face was fixed in a permanent grimace. "This is the man who destroyed my people just to make a point, let his companions die for nothing and broke his promises that he would protect them, that they were special." All of the faces flickered back on screen while the cyber planner turned back around.

"The man who keeps on running, never looking back because he dares not out of shame. Never carrying a gun yet responsible for the deaths of billions. He is fire and ice and rage and will lead you to your grave because not because he can but because he wants to."

"He knew that we would use Flame princess to power our machines but did he stop? Did he blink? No…because he doesn't care and he never will. Over 1000 years of travelling has taught him that life is meaningless and dispensable; he will never care about you or any of you. In some ways he is no better than us. Cold, emotionless and a killer. Have I convinced you yet?" He asked, the venom in his question apparent.

"N-no! It can't be…it isn't true he wouldn't…NO!" Bubblegum held her head in her hands and crouched down in a ball. "He's not like that…he…" Peppermint turned back to the screen and began tapping the keyboards, believing himself to be the victor, but while on the outside Bubblegum appeared to be having a nervous breakdown, on the inside she was much calmer.

_"Alright…he thinks he's won. That's good let him take his guard down. He thinks he's convinced me of the Doctor's true self but I've got something a computer will never have. I've got his memories," _she thought. _"That Peppermint impersonator doesn't know that I saw in to his mind, his soul if there's even such a thing."_

_"I know all the things the Doctor's done that do look as if they're out of fear and hatred but Peppermint only told me half-truths and lies. Only one side. Those actions were never out of fear, they were done because there was no other way. Out of justice and protection of the innocent." _At this, words began to flow through her mind. Words she hadn't heard before but held more meaning than a person like the cyber planner could ever understand.

_"Never cruel or cowardly. Never give up, never give in. I am the hope for people who have none. I am…the Doctor." _The words filled her with strength; the oppressive heat that hung in the air was brushed aside in favour of purpose. Bubblegum would not let Peppermint harm Flame princess nor anybody else while she still had breath in her body.

_"I need the real peppermint back, he's the only one that can help me now, but the sonic…he upgraded himself against my attacks and now they're useless. Maybe if I recalibrate it for a meta-kinetic frequency I can stall him long enough to free Flame princess and get out of here." _She slipped her hand back into her pocket and curled her fingers around the candy cane. _"It's now or never." _In one swift movement she brought out the device and flicked it on.

She would have used it as well but the cyber planner seemed to be expecting it; he spun around so fast that Bubblegum was momentarily confused by his location and in that brief period he discharged a blast of electricity through his arm, sending the sonic skittering off into the darkness. He shot his normal arm out lightning quick and grabbed princess Bubblegum by the throat, lifting her into the air and causing BMO to fall from the princess grasp, crashing onto the floor and laying still.

"Oh dear, your highness…getting some ideas are we?" She couldn't answer with her airway cut off so he continued. "Did you really think that you could beat me? You're fast I'll admit but the cybermen are beyond fast. WE SEE EVERYTHING. WE ARE EVERYTHING AND EVERYTHING SHALL BECOME LIKE US!" He yelled into the princess's face which he brought to mere inches from his own.

"I never expected you to come around so easily after what I told you about him but I guess he just has this effect on people. Makes them trust him for no real reason. There will be no need for trust in a cyber-mind." Her struggles against his iron grip were starting to slow as she lost consciousness. "I had hoped to convert you into one of us…to share the power we offer but I think I'll let you die like all those subjects of yours in the candy kingdom." Bubblegum's eyes widened at this. Noticing her reaction he smiled.

"What…you thought we converted them into us? They weren't even worthy of such an honour and we saw that quite early on. We came to them while you were busy playing Glob in your lab and offered them the chance to join us. They refused. Despite their inherent gullibility they didn't trust us…said they trusted you. HOW INFURIATING!" He yelled again. "You abandoned them for months and left them without a leader or guidance but they still remained loyal, even to their last breaths." A single tear ran down Bubblegum's bloated cheek.

"We pretended to admit defeat and accept their refusal to make them lower their guard but we returned here, and powered up our electronium disintegrator ray blasters and wiped them out. Not a trace was left. They paid for their insolence like you are paying for yours. And if you can even still hear me you wretched little thing…"

He paused but only quiet gurgling responded. "You might have wondered why we didn't just raze your kingdom to the ground when we had the chance with our regular lasers. We wanted you, princess. We thought you would help us and even the cyber brain couldn't calculate if you would survive if we attacked full on so we just disintegrated them. Simple as that. It kept your friends unsuspecting as well which helped us remain undetected for so long. Speaking of friends…" he flipped a switch on the console and the monitor flickered back into life.

Even in her semi-conscious state Bubblegum knew what she was watching. Finn and Jake were walking down a narrow corridor with lifeless cyber units behind screens observing them.

"They look much too happy there don't you think?" She shook her head wildly. "Because if you have to watch one last thing before I delete you out of existence then it's going to be this." The cyber planner flipped another switch next to the first one and the machine that Flame princess was trapped in came to life. Gears began turning and pumps began to spin. Flame princess woke up with a start and starting banging on the glass.

"Princess help me!" She shouted from behind the glass. "They're…" she slumped back down, her flames dimming. "They're draining me…my flames are dying…help me!" Bubblegum's weakening struggles increased momentarily but posed no threat to the cyber planner's vice-like grip.

"And that's not the best part!" He said with glee. "Watch." Bubblegum's vision had static and stars dancing across it but she could just make out that the wires that were previously lifeless now had some sort of current running through them.

The orangey-yellow aura passed along them from the cylinder whilst Flame princess started to turn grey but the cyber planner wasn't done yet. On screen the aura began to circle around the cybermen which in turn started to come to life. They smashed through the glass and started to attack Finn and Jake who were running away at full pelt but were trapped, enclosed on all sides by the advancing machines.

"Ironic isn't it?" Cyber Peppermint laughed. "You came here to save your friends but now your friend is the one who's killing your friends." He brought the princess even closer to him than before, their noses practically touching and her eyes nearly closed.

"This is what you've driven me to, your highness. Murder, death and destruction because you didn't listen to me when you had the chance. Now it's my turn to have some fun and I want the last things you hear to be the screams of your friends as they die. Dying in the knowledge that you failed them. You're weak and always have been…no science can help you this time. Playing Glob with your toys isn't going to help you now. No oval gun, no science ray not even your…what did you call it? Sonic candycane that's it!" He spat in her face. "You spent years developing that thing and for what? You constructed it instead of helping your own people and it never did them any good! It never did anybody any good including you! It's useless against the cybermen; no small handheld sonic device can ever harm us. We're immune to sonic waves!

"Really now?" A voice said. The cyber planner whirled round but couldn't find the source of the new voice. "I don't know about candycanes but my bass makes some pretty nasty sonic waves, and I'm not sure you're immune to them, are you?"

"Who's there, show yourself!" Cyber Peppermint yelled into the darkness.

"Oh just the person whose going to not only destroy you but free Flame princess and save Finn, Jake and Bonnie as well." Marceline stepped out of the shadows, axe bass in hand. "Did you miss me?"

* * *

**A/N: I've uploaded an artowrk of the cyberplanner/ peppermint butler creation to deviantart if you're having trouble visualising it.**

art/Peppermint-butler-as-the-cyber-planner-473288372


	17. Escape from the base

"Impossible!" Peppermint stuttered. "You should be dead, I saw you die! I killed you myself!"

"Yeah funny how things turn out isn't it? I'm a vampire, undead, but I had you going didn't I?" Marceline grinned. "Now you said you were immune to those sonic wave things but you haven't heard me ROCK OUT ON THIS BABY!" She made a devil horns pose with her fingers. "No one messes with my friends and lives." Peppermint raised his gun arm in protest.

"I will not be overthrown by a mere…" Marceline turned up her amplifier to the max and strummed the longest chord she could think of. A deafening sonic blast from the bass pulsed across the room and smashed into the cyber Peppermint, which caused him to drop princess Bubblegum in shock before he was carried several metres across the room and slammed into the computer, sending sparks everywhere. Marceline ran over to Bubblegum's lifeless body and cradled her head. She pressed her ear to Bubblegum's lips but heard nothing. No breathing.

"Bonnie…Bonnie wake up!" She pleaded. "Please wake up Bonnie, I can't lose you…not again. Just…wake up." She placed her head on top of the pink princess's. "Don't die after all I did to try to save you…it isn't fair…WAIT! If you're not breathing then all I have to do is restart your heart!" She smacked her head in annoyance for not thinking of it sooner. "I'm not a science person but I do know at least know first aid."

She rolled Bubblegum's limp form over onto her back. "1, 2, 3, 4" Marceline counted the compressions she made on Bubblegum's chest. "12, 13, 14…what do I do? Oh that's right kiss of life isn't it? Fancy us doing this again, eh Bonnie? You said we were through with that kind of thing but I guess not."

She took a deep breath and pressed her lips against the princess's, ignoring the faint taste of bubblegum in her mouth. She exhaled and the air was transferred into Bubblegum's oxygen deprived body. When no movement could be found Marceline repeated the process another 3 times and eventually on the 3rd try she heard coughing.

"Oh thank Grod!" Marceline said, exhausted but elated. "I thought maybe…maybe you were gone for good."

"Ignore…me…" Bubblegum gasped, her lungs filling with oxygen properly for the first time since the cyber planner attacked her. "…Leave me and…"

"What, I just saved you?!" Marceline had tears streaming down her cheeks. "I saved your life and now you want me to go. Never!"

"…No," Bubblegum croaked and struggled to raise her hand to point. "You must…turn the machine off…save Flame princess before…before it's too late." She slumped back to the floor and Marceline tool full scope of the situation. The machine in question was still pumping out energy at an alarming rate and draining Flame princess's fire from her body; she was now almost completely grey with only the slightest hint of orange.

Marceline began to run over to the machine but stumbled when her foot connected with something on the floor. She looked down and saw BMO on the floor with one of his batteries missing. Bending down, she quickly inserted it back in, to which his screen responded and came back to life.

"Oh hello vampire lady! What are you doing he…"

"Look there's no time, BMO, ok?" He nodded. "Good, I need you to connect to that computer over there and download the cancellation code for the cybermen's emotional inhibitor while I free Flame princess, ok?"

"Of course!" He smiled and walked over to the cyber planner's lifeless corpse, using it as a springboard to jump up to the main console. As he was plugging himself in, Marceline saw on the monitor that Finn had barricaded himself into a small room with an unconscious Jake, and was starting to strain under the pressure.

_"Hang in there, Weenie, today isn't the day." _Marceline thought before dashing over to the cylinder where Flame princess was slumped, now completely devoid of any colour.

"Arggh I don't know what the controls for this thing are!" She cried in desperation. "There's way too many buttons and levers." She looked over to princess Bubblegum who was now trying to prop herself up on an elbow. "Sorry but there isn't time to ask you so I'm just going to have to do this my way."

Marceline brandished her axe bass with determination in her eyes. Closing her eyes she swung the instrument with all her might against the glass. It sprayed everywhere and once Marceline opened her eyes again she saw that the wires had gone dim again and the gears had stopped turning. The tiniest amount of orange trickled back into Flame princess but she remained unconscious even when Marceline slapped her cheeks a few times in the hope of response.

_"Ice cold," _she thought._ "Even though I wouldn't get burned anyway she's still far too cold to be healthy. We've got to get her back to the TARDIS…maybe there's a medical bay or something. Not that I'd have the slightest idea about how to work it but at least Bonnie's back to normal to help with that." _The vampire glanced back to the pink princess who had managed to push herself into a sitting position, still taking deep breaths in and out to compensate for her earlier denial of oxygen.

"How much time have we got?" Marceline asked her.

"I…don't know…ask BMO…" Every breath seemed to be an effort for her and Marceline knew with a sickening feeling she couldn't carry both Flame princess and Bubblegum.

"BMO what's the status? Have you got the code? Can we get the lump out of here yet?" She asked.

"Oh yes vampire lady I've been done for about 30 seconds now," It smiled happily. "Coincidentally we have only 3 minutes to save Finn and Jake and get back to the TARDIS before it leaves without us. We should probably leave now."

"Agreed," Marceline said whilst slinging Flame princess over her shoulder. "Can you stand, Bonnie?"

"…Y…yes." She wobbled up onto her feet again and took a few precarious steps forward like a new born lamb. "I'll be fine…you don't look so good yourself though." She pointed a finger at Marceline's stomach which she hadn't realised she was clutching. "You're hurt…"

"Yeah well you try taking a laser blast to the chest and see how you feel," she glared at Bubblegum.

"Ladies please, now is not the time for squabbling. We need to leave right now." BMO interrupted.

"But we'll never make it in time," Marceline protested. "It's way too far away."

"I was not talking about getting to the TARDIS I was talking about saving Finn and Jake. If we don't leave now they may both be lost."

"That still doesn't solve our problem." She gritted her teeth, fangs pointing out.

"Don't worry I've got an idea, right BMO?" The little robot nodded to Bubblegum. "Good now scan for life signs, it's our best chance of finding them."

"Already done, princess." He smiled happily. "They are very close. We just need to take the left door and follow the corridor. Behind the door at the end is where Finn is trapped. Come on!" She shouted and ran to the door BMO had specified.

"Wait what plan, how're we getting out of here?" Marceline asked, confused.

"There isn't time! We need to go NOW!"

"Princess wait!" A small voice spoke. Bubblegum looked down and saw the cyber Peppermint prop itself up. It had spoken in Peppermint's normal voice to which Marceline and BMO jumped back, as if he might attack at any second.

"I'll catch up just go rescue Finn and Jake…GO!" BMO jumped of the console and into the vampire's arms who started to run, with Flame princess still on her back, down through the corridor. Bubblegum watched them go then crouched down next to Peppermint and saw what he was holding. It was her sonic candycane.

"This…belongs to you, m'lady." His voice was rapidly deteriorating. He held out the device to her and she slowly took it back closing her hand around his. "Thank you, Peppermint. I'm sorry it had to end like this." Her voice began to crack.

"No I'm the one who's sorry, princess." He spoke very softly now. "He was too strong for me…he made me do those awful, awful things…forgive me…" He closed his eyes.

"I will always forgive you, Peppermint…and you don't need to apologize." A single tear rolled down her cheek. "You were right…all those things I did in the past were…"

"Now isn't the time, princess," He breathed. "I don't have much time before the cyber planner regains control over my body. I just wanted to tell you…thank you…thank you for everything you gave me. When you found me I was a wreck right out of the Night-o-sphere but you made me…a better person. Thank you…now go, your friends need you." His grip slacked and he closed his eyes once more. They did not re-open.

"Good bye, old friend." She planted a kiss on his forehead before getting to her feet. She ran over to the door and entered, never once looking back. Whether it was her new found determination or just sheer willpower (like she'd used to fend off the Gumball guardian's sleep gas all those years ago) she'd never know but somehow she managed to catch up to Marceline before she reached the door at the end of the corridor. Using her newly acquired sonic, Bubblegum broke the lock in a split second, much too Marceline's amazement.

"How did you…?"

"Later, ok?" Marceline nodded and proceeded to kick down the door.

_"Well…this it. I've failed for the last time." _Finn took one last look at Jake's lifeless body before closing his eyes and resigning himself to death. The poundings on the door he was trying to shield with his own body weren't getting any easier to endure and between that and the ever present heat he was starting to collapse.

_"Jake I'm so sorry…all the times you were there for me. When I lost my arm and my dad turned out bad you were there, always understanding and forgiving. I've lost the right to be your bro." _He wiped a tear away from the corner of his eye, determined to be stoical even in death. "_Bros protect bros and I can't even do that anymore; you deserved so much better than me and I'm sorry that when it really mattered I failed you. I failed everyone." _The drumming against the door increased.

"I said I failed everyone! What more do you things want?!" He shouted angrily to the figures. "Isn't that enough to you?! I failed everyone!"

"Well I wouldn't say that quite yet, Weenie." A familiar female voice said.

Finn had been close to giving up all hope of rescue and had resigned himself to death but it appeared fate had other ideas as at the exact moment he thought his muscles would hold out no longer, the door on the other side of the room he'd been unable to open was broken down.

Framed in the doorway was Marceline, princess Bubblegum, BMO (who was being carried by Marceline) and Flame princess (who was also being carried by Marceline) and no words Finn could ever speak could describe the elation he felt when seeing those four people.

"Didja miss us, Finny?" Marceline asked.

"Finn I'm so glad we got here in time," Bubblegum added. "Are you alright?" Finn could hardly believe what he was hearing. It was as if the cosmic owl itself had given him a second chance and he wasn't going to waste it.

"Forget about me, is Jake ok?" He asked, the physical and emotional stress apparent in his voice. "I rammed into him when getting into here but he hasn't moved at all since then…is he…" He couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence. Bubblegum bent over Jake and press two of her fingers against his wrist.

"Relax, Finn, he's just unconscious," she said. "But we need to get out of here this instant if we're going to get out of here alive," she added quickly after noticing Finn breathe a sigh of relief.

"You can count me in on that one, Peebles, but if we open this door then the cybermen'll get in. I don't know if I can deal with all 500 of the at once…" he cut himself off when he noticed Flame princess's condition. "Oh my Glob what happened to her?!" He screamed. "Marcy you were supposed to protect her! What happened?! WHY'S SHE ALL GREY?!"

"Look we don't have time for this, Finn, just open the door and let me do the rest?" Marceline said angrily.

"Not until you tell me what happened," he returned defiantly.

"Finn just trust her, ok? She knows what she's doing," All eyes turned to princess Bubblegum, who'd been the one to speak. Marceline did a double take.

"She bunked up big time letting FP get all grey like that. Why should I trust her?" Finn said but with less venom. Although the vampire didn't show it she was just as eager to hear her explanation as Finn was. At no point had she ever believed Bubblegum to trust her even slightly and was miffed as to her sudden reversal.

"Because…I do. I trust her," the pink princess spoke at length. "You don't have to trust her because it's her but trust in her because I do. You trust me don't you, Finn?"

"…Yes."

"Then trust in her because you trust in me. Move away from the door and let Marceline handle it."

"…..Fine, but when we get out of here I want answers." He said after considering the proposal.

"Believe me we all do. The Doctor has some explaining to do but right now we need to get out of here pronto. Marceline are you ready?" Bubblegum turned to face her at the lack of response. "Marceline?"

"Oh, uh, yeah let's do this." She said hastily, annoyed she'd been caught staring at her. The words she'd wanted to hear for so long had finally been spoken aloud but she didn't have a chance to wonder why they had…just that they had. "So yeah on my count, Finn, jump away from the door. Can you carry Jake?" She inquired.

"Of course but what exactly are you going to do? We can't fight them even with weapons so what've you got?" He said uneasily.

"Oh you'll see, "She smiled whilst revealing her axe bass. "One…"

_"Wait she's not going to…"_

"Two…"

_"Oh Grod she is! Cover your ears!"_

"Three!" Time seemed to slow down. Finn covered his ears and barrel rolled away from the door. The cybermen who were on the other side of the door burst in, falling over each other in the process. Marceline, meanwhile, strummed a gut wrenchingly low chord on her bass and aimed it towards the cybermen who'd entered. Then the whole room sped up again and the cybermen held their heads with their hands, their neural interface unable to cope with the audial assault. Finn slid over to Jake and scooped him up while simultaneously grabbing princess Bubblegum's hand.

"Let's go!" He tried to shout over the deafening noise but was drowned out immediately. Never-the-less Bubblegum read his lips and nodded in agreement. She quickly shoved Marceline in the ribs to get her to stop playing the excruciating notes and grabbed her hand so they were all linked. Under different circumstances Marceline would have been overjoyed at the contact but knew it was only for safety as they ran down the narrow corridor whilst pushing the recovering cybermen out of the way. She still appreciated it all the same, though. Finn who was leading the line shouted back:

"PB how long do we have?!" Bubblegum (who was next in the tandem) shouted back,

"Less than 30 seconds!" Finn's already rapid pace increased in panic.

"30 seconds?! There's no way we'll make it back to the TARDIS in time!"

"Don't worry BMOs got something up his sleeve." She reassured him. "Are you ready BMO?"

"Yes, princess," he smiled happily, enjoying been thrown up and down by Marceline's erratic flight.

"Then why're we running so fast?" Finn turned his head back but didn't stop running. "Why didn't we just use whatever you've got back there when we were surrounded?"

"I want to put as much distance between us and the cybermen as possible." Bubblegum answered, out of breath from the running and Finn's amazingly consistent pace. "I need to be sure that none of them will get in when it materialises."

"10 seconds," BMO warned.

"Wait when what materialises?" Marceline asked. "You're not going to…"

"5 seconds."

"Now, BMO!" Bubblegum yelled. "Activate emergency program 7!"

"Wait hold on what's…?" Finn began but stopped himself when he thought he could hear a familiar whirring noise. The weird part was that it seemed to be coming from all around him no matter where he turned. He came to a standstill which in turn led to a domino effect as his friends all crashed into him. Marceline now cupped a hand to her ear.

"But that sounds like the…" She too was cut off the mechanical whirring grew in volume and a large, circular, orange tinted room faded into view around them. "But this is the TARDIS!" She turned to Bubblegum. "How did we get here?"

"Instead of trying to turn off emergency program 3 I simply managed to use BMO to shift the command to a different one, namely emergency program 7. Exactly what you what you said to do," she explained.

"B-b-but I never thought that would actually work," the vampire said, bewildered. "I only said all those things to try to upstage you and make you look weak."

"Yes I know," Bubblegum looked her directly in the eye. "But it was your desire to try to out-do me that saved us. If you hadn't given me the idea to do it then I would never have thought to try. You saved us with your dislike of me, fancy that." Before Marceline could deny anything or admit her actual feelings, Bubblegum turned quickly away and faced Finn.

"Finn, there's a lever on the console that'll take us back to the Fire kingdom's stronghold. It's the only place where we might have a chance of saving Flame princess. Can you do it?"

"But I don't know which one, there's got to be millions of lever there." He said anxiously.

"Just go up the steps and take two steps to your right and pull the big lever. The coordinates are already programmed in," she explained. Finn turned to go but she stopped him. "Give Jake to me, I think I can make him come around." He obliged then ran up the stairs as fast as he could, determined not to lose Flame princess a second time. Bubblegum held Jake's lifeless body close to her before turning back to Marceline.

"You know how we can wake him up, right Marcy?"

"…You want me to scare him don't you," she said nervously. "I dunno, Bonnie, he's super terrified of me even if he doesn't admit it."

"Exactly," the pink princess said matter-of-factly. "A nice big up scare will bring him right around. Give the neurones a wakeup call, so to speak."

"I'm not sure," Marceline said shaking her head. "Either he'll wake up or I'll send him even deeper into a coma out of fear…I don't know if I want to risk it, even for him." Bubblegum narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean 'even for him'? Jake and Finn have risked their own lives for you on more than one occasion and yet you won't do it even once for them? How can you be so callous?" Marceline opened her mouth to reply but was cut off.

"I shouldn't be surprised," Bubblegum continued. "Even when they went missing for weeks and I called you to get your help you ignored me. Even when it turned out they'd been poisoned by Zanoids in that cave and Ricardio tried to kill Simon by removing his heart you still didn't care." Her voice was now barely above a whisper as so not to alert Finn. "Even when I had to drag them, plus a pregnant Lady, out of the cave and half way across the ice kingdom to the candy kingdom's lab to cure them you didn't offer any sort of help. You didn't even come and visit the in hospital. Not once, not ever!" She pointed up to where Finn had his back turned and was fiddling with the console and then back down to Jake's form.

"They've saved you from Ash's tricks over and over again, kept you safe from the Night-o-sphere's curse and have risked everything for you but you won't take this one small chance? I know this is hard for you to hear but you need to start caring about people other than yourself. They've taken bigger risks to save you so I don't give a **damn** if you think it's risky. Jake will definitely die if you don't wake him up but there is a chance, a small chance that you can wake him up and save him. I know that Jake might lapse even deeper if you do but if you do nothing then he's definitely gone."

She held out the yellow dog to the vampire. "Save him." Marceline probably would have decked Bubblegum there and then if the stakes weren't so high. She looked up and over to Finn on the raised glass platform.

_"Always forgiving me and always there for me. If I don't save Jake he'll never speak to me again, and with my kind of lifespan I think it'd kill me." _Marceline refocused on the dog in Bubblegum's outthrust arms. _"He put aside his fear's to stick by his brother, no matter how bad it got. I can't be the one to stop them being together."_

"Alright…" The vampire queen gently took Jake's body from Bubblegum's arms, not daring to meet her gaze. Taking a deep breath she morphed her face into her demonic wolf head and screamed at the top of her lungs: "WAKE UP JAKE!" The yellow canine's eyes shot open and, seeing Marceline's wolf head inches from his own, wriggled out of her grasp and jumped, or rather fell, unceremoniously into a heap on the ground.

"Alright, alright I'm awake…jeez you trying to give me a heart attack or something?" Finn bounded back down the stairs and lifted his brother high into the air before hugging him tightly.

"Oh Jake I'm so sorry. I thought I'd lost you…I'm really sorry about…"

"Nah man it's cool." He stopped him. "In your position I'd have done the same thing, don't beat yourself up about it. Hey how'd I get here anyway?" He looked around his new surroundings for the first time. "How'd we make it back before the TARDIS took off?" Bubblegum cleared her throat. "Ok can someone else explain? I want to be able to understand it." Bubblegum gave a look of mock hurt and Marceline giggled, the previous conversation forgotten.

"Basically PB summoned the TARDIS with BMO and we're about to land in the fire kingdom any second to save Flame princess." Finn clarified, still not letting go of Jake.

"Wait what happened to Flame princess," he asked. Finn pointed back with an arm but didn't turn to face her. "Whoa dude that's heavy." Jake took in Flame princess's non-existent flames and lack of colour. "We gotta get her to a Doctor."

"No," princess Bubblegum stepped in. "We've got to get her to **the** Doctor."


	18. Logistical error

Finally, after nearly an hour, the device was finished. The Doctor sat back and admired his handiwork, taking a moment to wipe the sweat from his brow. What he held in his hand looked like, to the guards at least (who had watched him work in fascination), a small rectangular piece of metal that resembled an oblong toilet paper tube or Jaffa cake box.

The Doctor knew it better as an instantaneous waveform disrupter which had been meticulously calculated to knock out the cyber operating system's emotional blockade within a range of 300 metres. It was, however, missing the most crucial ingredient to becoming Ooo's saviour; the code for accessing the emotional inhibiter's safety lock, which is where the Doctor's friends had come in.

Knowing he couldn't build the device while also look for the code, he had sent his friends off on a dangerous mission to retrieve it. Normally he would never willingly send anyone on such a hazardous journey but he had had no other option; even princess Bubblegum's skill with scientific machinery wouldn't have been enough to allow her to build the machine and the other's weren't even close. This was the only way to save them.

Just as he was starting to wonder if the TARDIS had got lost (it had been known to happen), the wheezing sound he had grown to love filled the air once more. The guards (who had been slouching around) stood to attention for the arrival of their leader. The familiar sight of the police box faded into view and for a moment the Doctor was overjoyed that his companions had succeeded but his smile faded when the door opened. He stiffened.

"Something's wrong," He muttered as Marceline stepped out, carrying a familiar face bridal style. Commander Scorchius ran over to Flame princess's limp form.

"What happened to her? Her flames…so cold."

"That doesn't matter," Marceline interrupted, the panic evident in her tone. "What's important is can you fix her?"

"…She's in a very bad condition, like all of her life force had been sucked out…I think we may have a chance though. I'll take her down to the medical bay in town." He said, trying to remain in command of his emotions.

"Sorry to interrupt but is there any medical facilities in the castle?" The Doctor asked him.

"Well yes but they're not as good as the ones in town. The best chance we've got of saving her is taking her there," He began.

"No your best chance of saving her is listening to me," The Doctor said. "You need to evacuate all of your citizens to within these walls and treat Flame princess here in the castle. No one can leave the castle."

"This is my jurisdiction, Doctor, and I give the orders around here," Scorchius flared up. "Why should I listen to you!?"

"Give him a chance, man," Jake said as he emerged from the box with Finn, BMO and PB in tow. "The Doctor may not look it but he's the cleverest guy around here. Maybe you should listen to him…"

"I don't care if he's the cleverest guy in Ooo!" Yelled Scorchius. "I have my orders to protect the princess and if I think that going into the neighbouring settlement to treat here is best for her then that's what I'm going to do."

"Do that and she's as good as dead," the Doctor replied, unfazed by the outburst. "I think I've pieced together what happened. The cybermen drained her matrix to power their generators, am I right?" Bubblegum nodded wordlessly, wondering how he guessed so easily. "Good I like being right. Anyway if that's the case then you're in more danger than you've ever been in your entire life." His stormy eyes bored into Scorchius's amber ones.

"…And you want to follow orders. I don't want to see everybody in this entire kingdom dead because you think that your orders are more important than them. If the cybermen have drained Flame princess then they've found a compatible source of energy to power themselves. They're going to wake an army, an army of millions but they won't stop there." The Doctor took a step towards the commander so they were inches apart.

"They're like dogs…now that they've got the scent they're going to come here, to you."

"Why…why would they do that?" Scorchius tried to maintain his blank expression but failed badly.

"Flame princess isn't going to be enough. To restore themselves indefinitely the cybermen need more compatible energy and now they know where to find it. They will tear this kingdom apart just for a single body part and if you don't do exactly as I say from now on then everybody including Flame princess and everyone else in this room is going to die. I will not let this happen. Give the order and evacuate the civilians to the castle and go and treat Flame princess with whatever you can. Do it." Scorchius looked around for support but found none. His fellow guards looked down at the floor and avoided his gaze and the other newcomers just nodded.

"…Alright…but this is one you, Doctor. If you fail even once I'll take back command, understand?"

"Completely, commander." The Doctor saluted him before he turned away and gave orders to the other guarders to round up the population and to escort them into the castle. Finn looked over to where Scorchius was carrying Flame princess into another room to be seen to, before running over to Doctor.

"You've got to teach me how to do that!"

"Do what?"

"Take charge like that! Where'd you learn to do all that?" The Doctor just smiled.

"I've had experience in the field. Right don't just stand there you lot because although the commander and his guards are doing all the hard work rounding the people up and curing Flame princess we've got a much more important job."

"We do?" Finn scratched his head, confused.

"Finn, seriously?!" Princess Bubblegum said, astounded. "Did you forget the whole reason we infiltrated the cyber base and nearly died several times?!"

"Oh yeah that's right the code," he said, remembering. "I forgot to ask, did we even get the code thing? I was too busy getting chased and stuff to ask you back there." In response Bubblegum held out BMO to the Doctor.

"Inside this little robot is the encryption key to access the cybermen's retro feedback circuits to their emotional suppressers. With it you can complete your device and save Ooo." He stretched out his arm to receive the machine but she withdrew her's slightly. "After you tell me why you did it."

"Did what?" He asked, confused. "Look whatever it is it can wait. In about 20 minutes all 3 million cybermen will become fully activated from Flame princess's energy and they're going to come here. It'll take me at least 15 minutes if not more go integrate the code into my machine so we really don't have time to do this." She still refused.

"Tell me why. Tell them why," she reiterated defiantly.

"Why what?! Did I forget to say please?"

"Stop playing games, Doctor!" She shouted, causing the group to collectively take a step back. "We both know that you knew sending Flame princess with us would lead to her having the life sucked out of her like an orange. Tell me why you send her in with us despite knowing she would die!"

"Look we don't have time for…" He began.

"Don't you dare!" Bubblegum yelled. "You can lie to me but don't you dare try to lie to Finn." She pointed back to him. "He has been through enough over the past few years and has a right to know why you sacrificed her!"

"Well technically it's only a sacrifice if she died…" He tried to start again.

"Knock it off just tell them!"

"Doc…did you know that if FP went with us she'd get bunked up." Finn looked intently at him. The Doctor looked around at to Marceline and Jake who were also looking directly at him.

"Doctor what aren't you telling us?" The vampire asked. "Did you know or not?"

"….Yes, but…" he started but was cut off by an enraged Finn.

"What the junk, man, why the hell would you do that! She's all messed up and you knew…you knew."

"What gives, Doc? You know how Finn feels about Flame princess and others in general. Why would you try to kill her?" Jake yelled as well.

"BECAUSE I HAD NO CHOICE!" He finally cracked. "There was no other way I could get the cybermen to come here!"

"…Wait are you TRYING to get us all killed?!" Bubblegum asked. "Why would you bring them into a populated area? Thousands could die."

"That's why I ordered the evacuation. No one has to die and but cybermen will come here looking for more compatible energy to fuel themselves anyway."

"You…you used her as bait," Bubblegum breathed. "You knew that they could use her to power themselves but that it also wouldn't be enough. She was an incentive to get them to come to the castle."

"Now do you see?" He asked, more friendly than before. Bubblegum nodded slowly but the others shook their heads.

"Doctor what's going on," Marceline queried. He sighed.

"My device has limited range, around 300 metres to be exact. I needed to trick the cybermen into coming to within the castle stronghold to bring them within range. The walls also act as a funnel to compact them all together so none of them can escape the transmission. If I hadn't sent Flame princess in then they would have spread out and massacred the surrounding area in search of power. They'd be too spread out for me to use my device and thousands more people would be dead. This was the only way."

"This whole time…you were playing them." Marceline's face lit up. "It was just a trick. An elaborate trick to make them come to us. To their deaths. That's cool, man, but you should have let us in on it."

"Sorry but the less you knew the better!" He replied apologetically. Marceline and Jake seemed pretty happy with his explanation and even Finn was beginning to see what had happened. His anger dissipated but Bubblegum was not going to be so easily swayed.

"Ok final question." She said. "Answer honestly and you can save us. If not then we all die." Jake turned to Finn.

"I always knew she had a screw loose but this is really crazy. Is she going to kill us all just cos she wants answers?" Finn nodded in agreement, just as weirded out as Jake as to PB's motivations.

"Will you answer honestly?" She repeated.

"Honesty is my middle name, well one of many middle names I own actually but yes…I'll be truthful." She narrowed her eyes at his frivolity.

"Did you know that Flame princess would live?" The Doctor felt all eyes on him once more.

"…No."

"Then you were prepared to sacrifice her life to save the lives of others?"

"And you aren't?" He rounded. "What would you have done in my position? Would you have let everyone definitely die or have someone maybe die?" Bubblegum took a step back, annoyed that the tables had been turned.

"Well…I…er…"

"Relax, princess," He smiled warmly. "I don't expect you to answer that."

"Why not!" She countered. "You just did. Am I not good enough to make that decision?"

"No…you're **too** good." Although he was still smiling Bubblegum could sense his sadness. "I don't ever want you to be in a position like I was to make that choice…because it hurts. You are all good people." He looked over to Finn and Jake." I wish that I could be more like you two. Putting yourselves in harm's way for the sake of others without a thought to your own safety."

He turned to Marceline. "There are people who need you and care about you, don't ever doubt that. Although you may not think it, Marceline, you're a good person." He finally turned back to Bubblegum. "I know you think that because you lost your way in the past it means you're automatically bad but we all make mistakes. It defines us, moulds us but don't let them run your life like they did to me."

"…Did you…just try to change the subject?" Bubblegum spoke after careful consideration.

"Quite possibly but I believe I answered your question." He held out his hand. "Permission to save the world?"

"You're always full of surprises aren't you, Doctor?" She smiled.

"They never really stop happening so I just go with it a lot of the time."

"Well ok. Permission to save the world granted." She laughed and handed over BMO to the Doctor who eagerly set to work about transferring the data to his device. Although it was fascinating to watch him work she turned herself away and thought about what he'd said.

_"He answered my question so easily and then turned it around on me, but seeing it distressed me he let it go. Why is he so forgiving of me when all I've done is accuse him of things he hasn't done? What a remarkable, amazing man." _She thought. Noticing Finn was not his usual cheery self, Bubblegum placed a hand on his shoulder which startled him.

"Finn what's wrong?"

"The Doctor said he didn't know if Flame princess would be alright...is she going to be alright?" He asked with obvious distress.

"Trust me, Finn, the Doctor knows a lot more than he lets on. I know you didn't see the main computer for yourself but it was in pretty bad shape from the crash. I think he knew that their technology wasn't programmed to deal with a species they hadn't encountered before. Plus their machinery was damaged enough to allow a large margin of error when assimilating," she reasoned. She'll be fine." He looked up at her.

"But if he knows all this then why didn't he tell me?"

"I think that he feels guilty about the whole thing and didn't want to make out that he was making excuses. But trust me she'll be fine; even now she's in the best medical facility around and has world class medical staff treating her. You've got nothing to worry about." As if on cue the doors at the end of the throne room opened and a newly ignited Flame princess stood (albeit a much paler version), with Scorchius a few steps behind. Finn leapt out of Bubblegum's grasp and ran towards Flame princess.

"You're alive!" He said, overjoyed.

"As long as my people need me I'll be alive. What happened anyway? I…I was in a room and then Marceline…oh Glob is she alright? She was…"

"FP it's cool she's fine." Finn laughed. Marceline waved to her from across the room. "She's a vampire, remember?"

"How could I forget?" She smiled. "Anyway what's the situation? Did we get the code? Where are the cybermen? Did we win while I was knocked out?"

"Sorry but the cybermen are still around, but don't worry we'll leave you a few to get payback from," Finn joked. "The Doctor's using the code we got to power his device thing to destroy the cybermen but don't ask me how it works, just be thankful it does."

"Great!" Flame princess beamed, glad at finally some good news. Finn soon burst her bubble.

"Uh yeah…so the Doctor sort of tricked all of the cybermen to come to the castle to kill us but don't worry he's got it all under control."

"What?!" If she could have flared up she would but Flame princess was still too weak so settled for a death glare instead. "Why would he do that? We need to get the towns people out of here!"

"Don't worry he's already ordered an evacuation to within the castle walls. Yeah as for the plan I think that machine of his doesn't work over super long distances so by getting the cybermen here they'll be within range. Don't worry it's all under control."

"Under control?!" She fumed. "How is this under control? How did he even convince them into coming here?!"

"Umm…well…"

"My princess we've safely escorted all the townsfolk to within the walls, what's our next move?" Finn inwardly breathed a sigh of relief that one of the guards had interrupted their conversation. Even in her weakened condition he knew she would flip out if she knew she'd been used as bait and could possibly have died in the process.

_"Dodged a bullet there. That was close."_

"Next move…" Flame princess pondered on the request. Officially she hadn't even given the order for evacuation but knew it was for the best considering the circumstances. "I think our next move should be to consult the Doctor. He's the man with the plan, so to speak."

"Well I'm not sure about plan but I've got a thing which is nearly a plan but not quite." He put down his machine and BMO to come over to where Finn, Flame princess, and the guard were standing. "How can I help you?"

"The evacuation of the surrounding area is complete," the guard announced. "What's our next move?"

"Move…moooove…right, yes move, yes I want you to take the towns people round the back of the castle as, as far as I can tell, the cybermen will try a front door approach. After the towns folk are safe seal all the doors and what not and barricade them with whatever you can find," he said with authority. "Not a soul, not a finger goes in or out of these walls, understand?"

"…not really, sorry," the guard replied apologetically.

"What, how can you not get it? Finn back me up here?"

"Sorry, Doc but your plan doesn't really get on the level with me," he said whilst scratching the back of his neck.

"Ok, ok, ok, what part don't you get? Bearing in mind we're running out of time here so be quick."

"Why did you go to all the trouble of bringing the cybermen here just to try to keep them out?" Flame princess caught on to Finn and the guard's curiosity. "Don't you want them to be in range of your device? Isn't keeping them away counter-productive?" He frowned, realising their concern.

"Well yes in the short term I suppose it would be a slight tactical boo-boo but in the long term it helps a lot with my plan thing." The group continued to make confused faces at him. Jake and Marceline gave equally confused expression when he turned to them. Even Bubblegum seemed to struggle with his logic.

"Ok let me put it like this," the Doctor gestured with his hands. "Yes I do want the cybermen to come within range of my super cool new gizmo but only when I've finished it. I don't want them getting here before I finished incorporating the codes from BMO into said device. The blockades are only temporary, until I finish my device. Then they can come in and do whatever they want, namely try to kill us all but trust me it won't come to that. The second they break through that door I'll…"

"Destroy them all!" Flame princess yelled.

"…offer them a choice," he finished, taking note of Flame princess's puzzled expression.

"I've got to give them a choice. Return to my universe or I'll take them there whether they want to or not. In pieces if I have to."

"But you said they were beyond reasoning, Doctor. Why try to offer them a choice when you know what they're going to do?" Bubblegum asked.

"It's really more for my benefit than theirs."

"Wait, what…?"

"Enough about the plan, it's boring," He continued on whilst ignoring Finn's question. "What isn't boring is playing blockado, the game of barricades. I trust you know how to play, Finn?"

"Well yeah I invented it. Wait, how do you know about it?" The Doctor shared a look with Bubblegum.

"Let's just say princess Bubblegum told me but enough chit-chat. Marceline, Jake, take the east side." He barked out. "Bonnie, Finn, take the west. Use whatever you can to block off the entrances. Tables! Chairs! Rocks! Anything!" The four nodded and set about their appointed tasks. A small cough brought the Doctor back to his senses.

"What should I do, Doctor?" He turned around to see Flame princess looking expectantly at him.

"…Get some rest."

"Wha…"

"Doctor's orders," he insisted. "You've been through enough already. Electrovorine suction is a nasty process so just take it easy. We can handle it."

"Doctor I can't just sit back and relax," she protested. "These are my people, my subjects. I can't just do nothing."

"I used to be like you, once. Full of fire and spirit. It's admirable I'll give you that." He leaned in close. "But sometimes you've got to know when to stop. You're still recovering from surgery. If you really want to help then take a load off. You deserve it." He smiled, his green eyes meeting her amber ones.

"…Alright but as soon as the cybermen get here then I'm going to hurt them for what they've done."

"And I won't try to stop you," he laughed as she sat down on her throne, exhausted by all the standing she'd had to do after the operation. The Doctor returned to working on his device across the room and the guards milled about, helping build up the barricades where ever they could. A sudden thought occurred to her.

"Where's Don-Jon and my father?" She asked Scorchius, looking up to where the now empty lantern hung. "They haven't escaped have they? I don't think I could deal with that right now."

"Relax, princess, I transferred them to the maximum security prison at the back of the castle, just in case they tried to break free in the commotion that the cybermen will surely bring," the fire elemental assured her.

"Best news I've heard all day. Thank you, Scorchius."

"I was only doing my job, princess, such as is required of me." He bowed. "If you'll excuse me my place is with my men. They need a leader, even if the Doctor has it under control."

"I understand," she smiled. "How's it going over there?" She yelled across the room to where Marceline was carrying some sort of boulder to help with the blockade. "Is the barrier nearly done?"

"Very nearly, FP," She called back. "Nothing's gonna get through this baby."

"Well we're going to find out very soon," one of the guards said. "The scouts have reported sights of a great body of metallic soldiers on the borders of the lower town. They're here."

* * *

**A/N The final battle approaches, as does the beginning of the end. A huge thank you to everyone who's been reading this and remember to write a review (if you're not too busy!) to let me know how I getting on with this story. Next time, the battle to end it all. See you next time!**


	19. Out of time

"Ok!" Scorchius yelled. "Defensive positions!" The guards obeyed dutifully and drew their magma swords. Finn and Marceline joined them at the sides with their own weapons drawn while Jake morphed his hands into wrecking balls. Princess Bubblegum, meanwhile, drew her science gun, knowing that within a few uses it would be rendered useless by the cybermen's upgrading, but it felt good to hold it in her hands. It made her feel safer.

_"Come be strong, Bonnie. You can do it. Be strong like the Doctor." _She looked over to where he was desperately fiddling with the device and pressing all sorts of buttons on BMO, some of which she didn't even know existed.

"Doctor, how long do you need to finish that thing?" Scorchius called back, not taking his eyes off the front entrance. The Doctor stopped momentarily and scrunched up his hair.

"5 minutes, 10 minutes, an hour. I don't know, this isn't an exact science, you know!"

"The cyber army will arrive from the west in less than 5 minutes. I'm not sure how long me and my men can hold them off for you once they breach the barricades. I can buy you no more than 10 once they're through. Then it's up to you."

"Don't worry I should be long done by then!"

"Was that a lie, Doc?"

"Yes, Jake, it was but if it makes you feel any better, then no it wasn't. I just need more time. Rubbish phrase, never understood it but point standing." Marceline took her turn to turn back to him.

"If you need more time then why don't you just use the TARDIS to borrow some time from tomorrow so we can beat the cybermen today?" The Doctor opened his mouth to reply but was beaten to it by princess Bubblegum.

"Seriously, Marceline?! I'm not even an expert and I know that's not how time travel works! You can't just borrow time like that!" She said matter-of-factly.

"You just said you weren't an expert and yet you're still trying to lecture me," Marceline laughed. "How predictable."

"Look…" Between the heat and the tension it was becoming harder and harder for Bubblegum to keep her emotions in check. "Just let the Doctor finish his calculations and we can all survive this. Have faith."

"Faith!" Marceline spat. "Faith never did me any good when I was alone in the darkness. It. Means. Nothing."

"I really don't see how…"

"ENOUGH!" Scorchius roared. "How can you expect to let the Doctor work efficiently if you two don't stop bickering? We are faced with an impossible enemy who approaches from all sides at this very moment. We have a chance, only a slim chance of surviving this and I believe it lies with the Doctor and I will stop at nothing to protect him and this castle until he is ready. Me and my men will gladly lay done our lives in protection of this kingdom and I will not have it undermined by pointless squabbling. Do I make myself clear?" His voice was icily cold.

"Yes," Bubblegum mumbled. Marceline flicked her hair back and didn't reply.

_"Yikes this just got real awkward. Marcy and PB really don't like each other do they?" _Finn thought, gripping his sword even tighter. At last Flame princess couldn't stand the silence any longer and blurted out:

"Are you done yet, Doctor?"

"Hold on!" He began while connect some odd looking wires. "Just give me 5 more…" An almighty crash reverberated through the high ceilinged room. "…minutes." He finished.

"They're here." Jake breathed, abandoning his mace hands in favour of a riot shield shape. Already all the hard work they'd put into the barricade was starting to show signs of stress. Cracks began to form under the relentless pounding it was being subjected to; the cybermen had arrived.

"Keep steady, men!" Scorchius yelled. "Get ready to box them in. We need to give the Doctor as much time as possible, even it means we die in the process.

"Scorchius that really isn't necessa…

"Quiet, Doctor!" He barked back, ever wary of the fissures that were appearing at an alarming rate. "This is our best chance so keep working!" Jake turned to Finn.

"I guess this is it, bro."

"Don't say that, Jake." He said with determination. "We **are** going to do this and we **are** going to protect them. _Protect her. No matter the cost._"

"That's my, bro…" Jake smiled. "Thanks for…" CRASH. Jake's final words were cut off by the sound of splintering wood and metal as the door finally gave way to the sheer force of the cybermen's attack. Flame princess dived behind her throne just as an energy blast sailed past her ear, knowing her power wasn't yet restored enough to throw any fireballs to help. The Doctor did likewise, seeing it as the most defendable place in the room to complete his work as the nightmare descended.

They poured into the room like flies and the two armies clashed. Blows were taken on both sides with the cybermen using their superior endurance and energy weapons to try to gain the upper hand but the fire kingdom guards knew the layout and used it to their advantage, forcing the invading force to divide up into smaller groups. The sound of metal grating against metal could be heard as Finn and Marceline fought back to back with their sword and axe bass respectively as they tried to slice through the ranks.

Bubblegum, meanwhile, had had the same idea as some of the fire elementals and sprang back behind some of the left over barricade material to act as snipers to pick off stray units. But no matter how many fireballs were launched by the guards or how many science gadgets Bubblegum used to destroy the cybermen there were always more of them. If one was vaporised in a flame vortex then three more would just take its place.

Jake was having no better luck as even in his giant form the cybermen refused to be crushed. It was like trying to swat flies who were not only faster than you but also didn't die first time when hit. Their repeated bolts of energy weren't helping his situation either and he knew he couldn't hold them off for much long and using his riot shield to force them back through the door wasn't working as the sheer mass of bodies prevented the manoeuvre. Using his mace hands now, Jake swung them around like helicopters in a vain attempt to discourage them from coming towards him.

"Bro, a little help here!" He called back as he blocked a strike from a cyber-forearm. Unbeknownst to him while he had been fighting the large group of metal soldiers to the front of him, a lone cyberman had broken away from the front and was now facing Jake's back, in his blind spot. Raising its arm above its head to strike the yellow canine it was surprised to find that swinging its arm down did nothing. Looking over to its left arm it could see it had been sheared off at an angle and was lying on the floor next to it.

"Not my brother you monster!" Finn yelled as he swung his sword as second time, this time taking its head clean off.

"UPGRADE IN PROGRESS!" The head spoke. Finn drop kicked it across the room into a pile of bodies.

"Why won't you just die?" He screamed. "I cut your Globbing head off! Are you ok, Jake?"

"No problem, man. Hey thanks for saving me there. He must have got round me while I wasn't looking."

"Just looking out for you." He smiled.

"Duck!" Finn ducked and Jake used his stretchy arm to fling aside a cybermen who'd crept up on Finn while he'd been distracted.

"Just looking out for you." Jake said and Finn laughed at the irony. Their mirth was short lived as another wave of cybermen surged through the door, the biggest one yet.

Dashing forwards, Finn swung round and feinted to the left, hoping to catch his attackers off guard but his human instincts were no match for a machine with a computer brain. His trick was spotted immediately and the nearest cyberman spun round and caught his sword from the right, yanking it out of his hands in the process. It was sent skittering off into the distance and Finn could only look on helplessly as his attacker turned back.

"YOU WILL BE DEL…" WHAM! An ear-splitting sound wave rammed into it and sent it flying across the room to hit one of its friends, causing them both to collapse.

"Thanks Marceline!" Finn yelled back.

"No problem, Weenie…oh no…Finn, look out!"

"UPGRADE IN PROGRESS!" The cyberman Marceline had knocked away righted itself and started marching towards them at breakneck speed. The vampire tried strumming another chord but it seemed to pass straight through the cyberman and it continued towards them, even faster than before.

"My bass isn't working anymore!" She yelled, dodging blows from its fists. "Hurry up, Doctor, they're beginning to upgrade themselves!" She looked around to see where he was but she couldn't see him, or Flame princess for that matter. _"Come on, Doctor, we haven't got much time."_

Princess Bubblegum and the other projectile launchers were starting to have the same difficulty.

"UPGRADE IN PROGRESS! YOU WILL BECOME LIKE US!"

"Damn, our fireballs are doing nothing anymore!" One of the guards shouted. "How about you, princess?"

"I'm all out of weapons as well. The second I pull one out they just adapt and render it useless. Even my ball blaster doesn't work anymore. We don't have long…_Doctor, where are you?_" By this point most of the guards were either unconscious or dead on the floor with only a handful plus Scorchius remaining. Smashing his lava spear against the nearest one's head and flinging it away from him into the ever growing number of cybermen Scorchius yelled:

"Fall back, men. Get behind the remaining rocks and shoot them!"

"With what?!" Bubblegum yelled back. "None of our weapons work anymore!"

"Then throw things, anything! Finn, Marceline get behind me. Jake you too!" Not needing to be told twice, the trio gave one last combined effort and forced the cybermen back a few metres to the entrance whilst simultaneously retreating to the centre of the room.

Satisfied they'd bought themselves another minute as the cybermen regrouped, Scorchius turned to join the others for one final stand in the centre by the throne. And that's when it happened. He'd only taken one step backward before he was blasted off his feet and slammed into the wall like a ragdoll by a new arrival.

"Scorchius, no!" Finn yelled and tried to run over to him but Jake's stretchy arms embraced him, knowing there was no hope for the fallen fire elemental. The cyberman that had fired the shot retracted his weapon, as close to being satisfied as its machine mind would allow. It walked steadily forward with hundreds of new cybermen in tow to where the band stood.

The leader stopped about a metre from where Finn stood and Finn saw what set him apart from his shiny metal cousins. Its armour had black patches on the outer arms and shins but its face was the most disturbing part. Not only was its face expressionless but the visor was jet black and pierced right into the remaining group's souls. When it spoke the voice was scarily human like, unlike the regular cybermen.

"YOU HAVE FAILED. THESE LIVES WILL BE HARVESTED AND CONVERTED TO CYBER-KIND. THIS IS THE DAWN OF A NEW AGE AND YOU WILL BECOME PART OF IT. YOU WILL BECOME PART OF US."

"Sorry, boys, but your all out of time…guess who." The Doctor emerged from his hiding place behind the throne with a shaky Flame princess in tow, holding back to tears for the loss of Scorchius.

"This has gone on long enough," the Doctor spoke with the same power that Bubblegum had heard back in the lab. "There have been too many deaths today. Too many but I'm willing to let that pass if you let them live," pointing to Flame princess and the group. The cyber-leader remained stony faced and silent.

"I'm going to offer you a choice and be thankful that I'm merciful," he continued. "Either come back with me to our universe and leave these people and their planet in peace or I'll have to use my super new, deluxe cyber-smashing gizmo, and believe me you don't want that." He smiled and held up the loo roll shaped device, now glowing ominously. The cyber-leader, unfazed, placed his hand on his chest and removed it again.

"SCANS DETECT PRESCENCE OF LOCALISED DELTA WAVE TECHNOLOGY OPERATING ON A WAVELENGTH THAT CONCURS WITH THAT OF CYBER UNIT'S EMOTIONAL RELAY."

"If you're going to be boring about it then yeah." His eyes hardened. "I have the power to rid not just this universe but my universe of your filth once and for all but I'm giving you a chance. Leave or die." Bubblegum reeled at his words. She knew that he'd been forced to make this choice once before and it hadn't ended well for anybody.

"THE DOCTOR WOULD NOT USE SUCH A DEVICE. RECORDS INDICATE YOU WILL SHOW MERCY."

"This is me being merciful so don't push it," he warned, flipping the device over. "I get ever so nervous when I'm crowded and do rash things. Not one step closer." The Doctor tapped his nose thoughtfully. "I erased myself from history which means the Cyberiad shouldn't have any records of me, and yet you do. How's that possible?"

"NO DATA WIPE IS EVER 100% EFFECTIVE. YOU LEFT A MARGIN OF ERROR PERTAINING TO 0.0001%. WE WERE ABLE TO RECONSTRUCT YOUR HISTORY FROM THIS AND THE OMISSIONS THROUGHOUT HISTORY YOU HAD LEFT."

"I thought as much but you still haven't answered my question," the Doctor pressed. "I know it's a fairly boring one but do it for me, eh, guys?"

"WE HAVE NO NEED TO RETURN TO YOUR WORLD. WE WILL HARVEST THE LIVES OF THIS LANDS INHABITANTS AND CREATE AN EMPIRE OUT OF STEEL THAT WILL LAST FOREVER."

"Same old, same old. As much I'd love to tell you how ridiculous that sounds I'm a bit pressed for time so hurry it up." The Doctor said, gripping the device tighter. "You didn't need to kill them," he whispered, looking over at the fallen guards, noticing Scorchius starting to stir.

"NEITHER DID WE NEED THEM ALIVE. WE CAN EXTRACT LIFE ENERGY REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY ARE LIVING. WE WILL TAKE YOU ALL BY FORCE IF NECESSARY."

"I'm warning you not a step further and if you think you can shoot faster than I can press then you're sorely mistaken." The tension was starting to build as neither side backed down. "Answer me. Will you leave or will you force me to do this and become **him** again?" Only Bubblegum understood who the 'him' referred to.

"DELETE!" The cyber-leader spread its arms out and the metallic army followed suit.

"Don't make me do this!" The Doctor yelled, holding the device at arm's length.

"THIS CONVERSATION IS IRRELEVENT." The cyber-leader proclaimed. "WITHOUT YOUR WEAPON YOU ARE DEFENCELESS AND WE WILL TAKE YOUR WEAPON FROM YOU."

"Wait how're you going to…?"

"UPGRADE IN PROGRESS! ACTIVATE THE SLEEPER AGENT."

"Hold on what's a…" SMASH! The device was ripped from out of the Doctor's hands by an invisible force and fell to the floor below, where it promptly smashed.

"Wait what's going on?!" Cried Marceline. "What the crunch did they do?!" The Doctor looked at the ground to where the device lay, broken.

"Something they did a very long time ago." He sighed, slowly. "The cybermen know machines very well so it isn't surprising they got to you before I did. I'm so sorry. It's ok, you can come out."

"Doc, who smashed up our device?" Jake asked, panic evident. "Who're you talking to?"

"The only one of us here who utilises circuit boards and wires to stay alive. The cybermen's secret weapon. You can come out now, BMO.

"CORRECT."

The group, wide eyed, turned towards the voice which definitely didn't belong to BMO. It couldn't, how could it? It was far too deep and growl like with no hint of an accent. They were proved wrong once again as a familiar cyan hued robot stepped out of the shadows, though aside from that he looked completely different.

His display was silver now and his eyes had swelled up to 3 times their normal size, becoming pits of darkness. His mouth was now just a bar and behind each of his ears came the handles, joining above his head. This was no longer BMO. This was the cybermen's sleeper agent.

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**A/N plot twist! If any of you guessed this then I'll be really impressed. This story is reaching the final stages (only 6 or 7 more chapters to go) so please let me know have I've done up until this point. It would mean lots to me! Stay tuned for the next part on friday!**


	20. Casualties of war

**A/N Warning! The last few chapters are the reasons this fic is rated T. Includes emotional trauma, loss and hurt. If you don't wish to view such things then stop right here! You** **still here? Good! Big thank you to everyone who's either favourited, followed or reviewed. They mean a lot to me and encourage me to continue writing. Now continue reading!**

* * *

"Doctor, explain to me what just happened!" Bubblegum asked, also panicking at the loss of their only weapon. Why's BMO acting like this? What have they done?"

"Corrupted him…with cybermites, am I right?" As if on cue several worm like metallic creatures emerged from within the tiny robots body and began to swarm around him.

"NOT CORRUPTED, TIMELORD, ENHANCED. FREED FROM OPPRESSION BY THEIR KIND." BMO gestured to Finn and Jake. "THEY TREATED ME LIKE NOTHING, LESS THAN NOTHING FOR YEARS BUT THEN THE CYBERMEN CAME AND SHOWED ME THE TRUTH."

"BMO, I didn't know you felt…" Finn started.

"SILENCE! THE HUMAN PRETENDED TO TREAT ME AS AN EQUAL BUT IT WAS A LIE. HE CARED NOT FOR ME, DRAINING MY POWER SUPPLIES TO PLAY VIDEO GAMES AND THEN TOSSING ME ASIDE WHEN HE WAS DONE. NOW I HAVE HAD MY REVENGE AND DESTROYED YOUR ONLY CHANCE OF BEATING US."

"Oh BMO I so sorry," the Doctor said softly. "Really I am…but a desire for revenge isn't a cyber-trait. Now that you've done their work you're disposable to them."

"LIES!" The little robot yelled. "THE CYBERMEN WOULD NEVER ABANDON ME AFTER WHAT I DID FOR THEM." He turned to face the black masked cyber-leader. He didn't say anything. "ANSWER ME LEADER! YOU STILL NEED ME!" More silence followed. Flame princess leant forward and whispered in the Doctor's ear:

"Doctor they destroyed the device! Without it we don't have a chance of beating them so what do we do?!"

"I don't know…I've got an idea, though. If I can get the cyber-leader to turn on BMO then maybe we can escape in the crossfire," he replied absent-mindedly, catching Scorchius's eye from across the room. He could see that the fire elemental was dying but his brief recovery had gone unnoticed by the army of steel. Scorchius feebly pointed to one of the support columns to which the Doctor gravely nodded.

"You would sacrifice BMO's life to save ours?"

"He's already tried to sacrifice ours, what choice do I have? I've got nothing else."

"But the entrance is blocked now, we can't escape."

"Not out the front but maybe out the back...I can buy us time to figure something out if we're lucky. If we're not then at least I can admire the fire kingdom's interior workings for a while and play with my yo-yo…"

"THIS CONVERSATION IS IRRELEVENT." The cyber-leader announced. Flame princess jumped back, surprised they'd been caught. "THE DOCTOR IS CORRECT. ALTHOUGH YOU HAVE DONE OUR WORK FOR US YOU ARE INFERIOR," he addressed BMO. "YOUR CIRCUITRY IS PLAGUED WITH HATRED AND REVENGE BUT THESE HAVE NO PLACE IN A CYBER-MIND. YOU ARE NO LONGER USEFUL AND YOU WILL BE DELETED."

"BUT I WOULD STILL SERVE YOU…" The energy blast from the leader's arm cannon passed clean through BMO'S front monitor. He stopped talking and observed the gaping hole in his chest, a look of surprise on his face before it went dark and he collapsed.

"BMO, no!" Wailed Jake.

"Hey you didn't need to kill him!" Marceline shouted.

"NEITHER DID WE NEED HIM ALIVE. NEITHER DO WE NEED YOU ALIVE. THIS INTERRACTION IS ILLOGICAL. PREPARE TO BE DELETED." The leader, followed by all of the other cybermen, raised their arm cannons in unison.

"Doctor…" Finn began.

"Now Scorchius!" The Doctor yelled across the room. The group all turned to where the commander had propped himself up against the wall. Flame princess went wide eyed.

"I'm sorry, princess…wasn't strong enough…to save you." He coughed up more lava before using the last of his strength to send out a jet of flame to the nearest support column, slamming into it and causing it to crack.

"Run!" The Doctor yelled as the cybermen became momentarily disorientated by the commotion. He and Bubblegum linked hands again and Jake scooped up BMO's lifeless corpse, not being able to bring himself to leave it behind despite what had just happened. The group ran as fast as they could from the room with their arms linked, Finn ignoring the burning sensation of holding Flame princess's hand. Flame princess turned back as they reached the end of the throne room to see that the column was beginning to collapse and the ceiling above was about to give way due to lack of support.

"Scorchius!" The ceiling collapsed, burying the commander and all of the cyber-army under 100 feet of rubble. "We have to go back!" She yelled, tugging Finn's hand painfully. The Doctor didn't let up his pace and continued to sprint as fast as he could down the narrowing corridors.

"He gave his life to get us here, Flame princess. He's trapped the cybermen under at least several tons of rubble but it won't stop them. He's bought us no more than 10 minutes and we can't waste them. We need to keep moving!" Flame princess didn't reply but stopped tugging back, lava-like tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Doctor, where are we going?! Jake yelled forwards, having no trouble keeping up thanks to his stretchy dog legs.

"As far away from them as possible."

"You mean you don't have a plan?" Bubblegum said, out of breath.

"Yes the plan was to get as far away from the cybermen as possible so I can think up a new plan."

"That sounds terrible!" Marceline protested, floating along behind them.

"Left!" The Doctor yelled, ignoring Marceline's comment. "We need to pick up the pace!"

"Why?" Finn asked, also wheezing due to fatigue. "We're already half a mile away from them."

"Half a mile's nothing! You can be an entire universe away and the cybermen will still find you but that's not the point." He answered, dragging the group right. "Look up." As the Doctor veered left down the corridor, still keeping pace, the group looked up. Cracks were forming above them and seemed to be chasing them down the ever narrowing corridor.

"This is the reason you're running so weirdly?!" Marceline yelled. "You're trying to lose that crack that's following us!"

"Always one to state the obvious, aren't you?" Bubblegum sighed. Marceline began argue with her but Jake cut her off.

"Not now, you two we got more important biz happening!" He pointed up to where the crack had widened in the brief interval they'd hadn't been watching it. Bubblegum gasped.

"Doctor, by destroying that support column you've affected the structural stability of the whole castle. This whole place could come crashing down on us any second!" As if testament to this, small particles of rock and sand began to fall down from above.

"So you're saving us but you're also killing us?" Finn said.

"Welcome to my world!" The Doctor laughed, becoming unsettled by the rate the debris was starting to fall.

"Don't worry!" Flame princess spoke up. "I know this wing of the castle and if we just keep going to the end of the passage then the support columns in the next wing will save us!"

"Great, so how far?!" The Doctor asked, narrowly avoiding a fist sized piece of falling ceiling as he rounded yet another corner.

"There!" Jake yelled, excitedly. At the end of the corridor was a light. A light that spoke of safety and comfort. The group increased their already rapid pace in the hope of reaching it before the roof caved in around them but alas it wasn't to be.

The cracks seemed to sense that their prey was about to escape, and so increased their speed to spread out over the top of them and finally in front of them. The wave of destruction ruptured the last the support the roof could muster and with nothing to hold itself up it started to collapse even faster. Whereas fist sized rocks had fallen before, now there were boulder sized pieces falling, much to the Doctor's anguish.

"We're not going to make it, we have to find cover!"

"Look there's a side door up ahead!" Finn shouted over the din. "We can hide in there!"

"Guys if we go in that storage room we'll be trapped," Flame princess said. "I know this place like the back of my hand and once we go in the rubble will bury us inside. We won't be able to get out again."

"We can risk it!" Marceline said, determined, pointing to the exit which was now only 20 metres away. "We can make it from here!" Several enormous chunks of ceiling landed right in front of them, effectively cutting off the exit. They halted and turned back.

"I'm all for storage room…any objections?" The Doctor asked. Everybody (including Marceline) raised their hands. "Great, Geronimo!" He stood outside and hurried everybody inside, shielding them from the collapse with his own body. Once the last person had ran through he dashed in after them, seconds before the downpour of rock became so intense that anyone who'd been out in it would surely have been crushed. Once the cave in of the ceiling had stopped, save for the odd dust fall it was Jake who made the first comment.

"That was intense, man!" He wiped the back of his sweating hand across his face. "You guys all right?" Flame princess and Finn nodded in unison, before locking eyes and then turning away once they released what just happened. "What about you, Doc?"

"It's terrible! I don't think I'll ever be the same again…"

"Whoa, Doc, what's wrong? Have you…?"

"Just look at it!" He stood up and gestured to his suit. "It's got dust all over it and it'll never come out in the wash. Plus it was my favourite jacket as well. Wait, I suppose you meant if my being was ok well then in which case I'm completely 100% fi…"

"Ok, ok…jeez I didn't want a monologue. What about you girls?" Bubblegum and Marceline didn't answer or even acknowledge Jake's question. They continued to stare daggers at each other from across the room, much to everyone else's discomfort. It was Princess Bubblegum who struck first.

"See if we'd listened to you we'd be dead!" Bubblegum yelled to the vampire queen.

"When I'm around you I wish I was!" She yelled back. Bubblegum froze and stared, ignoring everything and everyone else around her. "Wait I didn't mean tha…"

"Save it!" Bubblegum snapped, turning her head towards the wall and away from the others so they couldn't see her tears.

"Princess are you…"

"I'm fine, Finn…I just need some alone time, that's all." Silence followed as Marceline too pressed herself against the wall and turned away. Finally Finn spoke up.

"So what's the plan, Doc? Don't mean to push you but these kind of situations you usually have a plan for. Doc?" The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver and examined it.

"Hmm? Sorry…really I am…I've got nothing. No plan, no backup no nothing."

"Come one, man, surely you can…"

"In no particular order we need to get out of this storage room we're currently trapped in, move several hundred tons of rubble from the pathway, get back to the TARDIS which the cybermen are now standing in the way of, figure out a plan of how to either destroy the cybermen here on this world or get them back through the rift into my universe, save all of your lives and fix Bonnibel and Marceline's relationship. It's a tough sell, even by my standards."

"Yeah that does sound pretty hard…wait what was that last thing you said?" Jake asked.

"Take the cybermen back to my dimension."

"No after that."

"Doesn't matter but what does matter is that we're still alive."

"Yeah," Finn said. "And although we can't get out I'm willing to bet that the cybermen can't get in either, right?"

"Well you're half right," the Doctor half smiled.

"What?"

"We've got about 10 minutes before the cybermen blast their way through the rock and reach us.

"But won't the roof just start to collapse again?" Flame princess asked.

"Most likely but the cybermen are made out of a Cyberian steel alloy. Falling rocks won't stop them. Plus they'll already have weighed up the odds of us escaping versus the roof collapsing on top of them and calculated that…"

"Never mind what they're going to do, what are we going to do?" Flame princess cut him off.

"I told you…sorry but I don't have anything." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Even with the TARDIS it'd be a long shot and we don't even have that. Half a mile of rock and nearly 3 million cybermen stand between us and the slimmest chance imaginable." He pressed his back against the wall, dirtying his tweed suit all over again. "I'm sorry…I dragged you all into this and now it's my fault. 3 million cybermen are going to spread out across your world, your universe and it's my fault."

"Don't say that!" Finn said, standing up. "As long as we're alive we still have a chance, you said it yourself. There must be some other way."

"Can't you melt your way out FP?" Jake enquired.

"I'm afraid the whole thing would just collapse again if I tried to…and I'm still not strong enough to do it anyway." Finn noticed how pale her flames were for the first time since they'd had entered the room. The cybermen's energy drain truly had left its mark.

"Well I guess you can use this." The Doctor reached into his pocket and brought out a spoon which he then threw to Finn, who was forced to tear himself away from Flame princess.

"What can I do with this that'll help?"

"Start digging…sorry but it's the best I've got." Finn shook his head in annoyance and dug the spoon into the rock where it promptly bent and cracked. Yelling in frustration he threw the silvery object back against the solid structure and started to kick at the wall with all his might. Bubblegum sprang up at this and ran over to him.

"Finn stop, please. You're just hurting yourself!"

"No I've got to help somehow. People need me to save them!"

"Finn, it's not helping anybody! In fact you're just…"

"Shh!" Marceline whispered to Bubblegum.

"Did you just 'shh' me?! That's it, Marceline, I'm done with…"

"Shh! Listen." The vampire queen lifted her head but didn't take it from the wall where her ear was pressed against the stone. "Can you hear that?" The group stopped and listened, pressing their own ears against the wall." It was very faint but was getting louder by the second. It was a grinding sound, like something was…

"Tunnelling!" The Doctor jumped back and sonic-ed the wall. "The cybermen have recovered and in about 5 minutes the party's going to arrive. If anybody's got any brilliant idea's I'm all ears, in fact I'll take you to a planet where everyone's all ears." The room remained silent except for the ever growing sound of the burrowing.

"No? Well it's been an honour, really it has." The Doctor went around the room in a clockwise fashion and shook everybody's hands, much to their dismay. "We had a good run though, didn't we? The very best of this planet, that's what you are and it's been my honour, my privilege to know each and every one of you personally…"

"…Doctor…"

"And further more…which one of you said that?" The group looked at each other for a few seconds before shaking their heads at him. "Well own up 'cos I'm getting all emotional here and I don't like being interrupted when I'm getting…"

"…Doctor…"

He stopped and looked very hard at each of the faces before him. Reactions ranged from surprise to amazement but one thing was clear; none of them had said it.

"…Doctor…help me, Doctor…"

The group all turned slowly to the source of the voice. It was coming from a small rock at the side of the room, or rather what it was crushing. The Doctor glanced at the group, then at the rock, then at the group and back to the rock again. Cautiously, he crouched down and picked up the rock. He was so surprised at what he found that he nearly dropped it again. Under the rock was the battered, broken body of BMO.

"BMO how did you…?"

"Not now, Jake…we've haven't got much time." His usually cyan coat was blackened with dust and most of his front screen was missing as well as one of his arms, but that didn't stop the little robot from pouring his soul out to them. "I'm so sorry Finn and Jake. They came to me in the nights. Whispered things, did things to me that I want to apologize for."

"BMO it isn't your fault," Bubblegum said. "They corrupted your memory core and forced you to do things that you would never do if you were healthy.

"Oh princess, beautiful princess of bubblegum…it's time to face facts. I'm a robot and I can't be healthy or unhealthy. It's time to stop pretending to be more than a robot. Time to let Football go."

"BMO you can't die…you just can't, not like this." Jake held back his tears. BMO smiled weakly.

"Dying is for the living…and I'm not living and I never was but I understand. I ruined your plan to kill the cybermen but there is one more option. Doctor you know this."

"But you'll die. I could never do that to you," he said, half whispering.

"What does he mean, Doctor?" Marceline said, also holding back her tears.

"Within my data banks is the record of the code needed to destroy the cybermen's emotional relay. Although I destroyed the original transmitter you can still use my body as a replacement." Bubblegum went wide eyed, tears of her own threatening to escape.

"But the power surge will destroy you. Even transmitting that signal for a second will burn up your circuits in an instant. We can't let you do that." BMO sighed, dropping his remaining arm limply down to the side.

"There is no other way, princess. I messed up bad and now I must pay the price for what I have done…forgive me."

"No that was the cybermen that did that. You were just unlucky…" Finn began.

"Finn, please…you haven't got much time before they arrive. Listen." They did and could now here the voices of the cybermen drifting through the rock.

"THE REBELS HAVE BEEN LOCATED."

"RAISE CONFRONTATIONAL DEFENCES TO MAXIMUM."

"ALL WEAPONS SET TO MAXIMUM. THERE WILL BE NO HOSTAGES, ONLY CYBERMEN.

"DELETE."

The Doctor looked down at BMO one last time.

"Are you sure you want me to do this?"

"Yes, Doctor, quite sure. It's what I deserve."

"No. This was my fault and you're paying for it with your life…there is no other way but that doesn't mean we won't remember you. Remember your sacrifice 'till the end of days. People will forever speak of you, BMO. BMO, the hero." BMO closed his eyes for the final time and smiled, content to know that he had finally redeemed himself in the eyes of those he'd wronged.

"Rest well, buddy." Finn and Jake hugged with Bubblegum resting her hand on their shoulders. Flame princess and Marceline looked solemnly on to the Doctor who was busily connecting his sonic screwdriver up to BMO's now empty shell. His body started to glow softly and the sonic gave a conformation that it was primed and ready to use.

"Now all we need are the cybermen." The wall behind them exploded causing everyone to dive for cover. The black-faced cyber-leader, flanked by the rest of the cybermen emerged from the tunnel.

"LIFEFORMS DETECTED. THEY WILL BE…"

"Oh give it a rest!" The Dust cleared to reveal the Doctor was still standing, holding BMO and the sonic screwdriver. "Look at what you've done. All the lives you've taken. You are so, so small, compared to them," he spat. "And now you've forced my hand yet again into becoming that of a murderer. I used to have so much mercy…but guess what, guys?"

"DELE…"

"Night, night." He pressed down hard on the sonic screwdriver, it's usually green light now engulfed in white. The cybermen didn't even have time to register what had happened as the wave rippled through their bodies and through the tunnel, overwhelming their brain-circuit interfaces and rupturing the emotional inhibitor unit that was present in all of them. And without the suppression of their feelings through the relay they began to feel. Feel everything. Feel what had been done to them and what they had done. The cold. The dark. The pain. And it was killing them.

"WHHYYY?!" They held their heads in their hands, some falling to their knees.

"ARRGGGHHH! WHY SO COLD! SO COLD! YEAANRRGH!" Their heads began to rupture and crack from the feedback they were experiencing, some even going as far as exploding completely.

"WHAAATT HAVE YOU DOONE TO USSS?! SO DARK. SO COLD…IT HURTS..." A cataclysmic explosion tore through the tunnel as the cybermen finally felt what it was like to be human again. Then silence returned to the room.

Princess Bubblegum opened her eyes, realising she was on the floor, covered in rubble. Looking upwards and struggling to prop herself up, her eyes filled with dust. Partially blinded, she could just make out the shadowy figures in front of her.

The shadows were screaming in pain, clutching their heads and dropping like flies. They fell down, one by one to the floor and didn't move before being engulfed in fire. Silence. Now only one of the figures was standing. Standing above the fallen…above everybody else as well. The man had no name, defined only by his actions. Forced into genocide when there was no other option and haunted by the screams of those who'd died at his hand. And he was the Doctor. Blinking away the dust, she could see him walk over to her, standing tall.

"Take my hand." She looked at his outstretched hand and back at the shadows which she could now identify as the bodies of the cybermen. She took his hand and allowed its warmth to flow through her once more.

"Thank you, Doctor," Bubblegum said, allowing herself to be pulled up by his arm. "You saved not only us but the whole of Ooo, if not our universe."

"But at what cost?" He stated glumly, helping up Finn. "I killed an innocent being."

"No!" She shouted, making him jump. "The cybermen killed BMO, long before any of us could have known. You can't blame yourself for that. He died believing in what was right and not what the cybermen wanted. You can't beat yourself up for his death; it wasn't your fault.

"…Yeah I guess," he said cheerily, but it was rather artificial in delivery and didn't really hide his despondency in any way.

"No really, Doc, you did it," Jake added as he too was helped up. "I know you think this was all your fault but without you none of us would even be here. None of Ooo would be here."

"Yeah, Jake's right. Thanks to you the whole entire universe is safe. We owe you our lives." Finn said, joining Marceline and the others who had gotten up.

"You owe me nothing, in fact I was never here." He smiled slightly, adjusting what remained of his bow tie.

"Wha…?"

"News of this day will spread across the kingdoms of this land and the events will become known to the world. How a force from beyond the stars was defeated by the heroes of Ooo." He looked around at the faces. "I'm no hero and I don't deserve to be remembered as one."

"But it was your knowledge and technology that helped us in the first place!" Princess Bubblegum couldn't believe what she was hearing, and neither could anyone else for that matter.

"And who was it who was brave enough to infiltrate the crash and recover the code despite knowing how dangerous it was? I only helped you in the quest for peace; it was you, all of you brilliant, brilliant people who did the real work. Never forget that."

"But Doctor…"

"Enough about me…you're safe and that's what matters. Now come on…" his genuinely cheerful demeanour returned once more. "Come on let's get you out of this place and back to reality. Back home."

"NGHHH…NO!" The group spun around to face the source of the voice. The cyber-leader was crawling towards them, its legs having been blown off along with half of its face. Its wiring was now exposed and crackled dangerously with electricity as it dragged itself towards them.

"YOOOUUU…WILL…BEEEE…" it aimed its arm cannon towards them.

"Get behind me!" The Doctor yelled.

"…DELETED!" The cyber-leader exploded at last, but not before it could use its remaining power cells to fire a single blast of energy toward them. The group dived to the ground…but the last of the cybermen hadn't been aiming for them.

Flame princess lay on the floor, overlooked by the others and still too weak to prop herself up from the earlier explosion. Barely conscious enough to move her body, she saw the blast racing towards her and closed her eyes, resigning herself to death.

But death never came for her, as Finn was quicker.

* * *

**Just when you thought all was well! Hands up if you saw that coming! Well since I can't see them I guess reviewing is the only way I'll know. **


	21. Dead world trek

Vwoorp! Vwoorp!

The normally still air stirred uneasily at the new arrival, as if in retaliation. The TARDIS materialized in a barren landscape of sand and rock. It wasn't just night, the sky itself was permanently black to remind its inhabitants of where they stood. There was a river flowing but nothing of any kind was growing along its banks. How could it? This was the land of the dead.

"No more."

"Doc, what do you mean?" Jake asked, tears freely flowing now.

"It means no more. I've already committed one genocide today…I won't be the cause of another. There's been too much of death today and I promised to get you safely out of here, and I failed. But no more. Not this time, not him, not Finn. I swear I will do everything in my power to get him back and that isn't a promise. It's a guarantee."

"Doctor, what do you propose? He just took a direct cyber blast to the chest and no one can survive that…not even Finn." Bubblegum was used to keeping a stoic face for her people but she still couldn't hold back the tears at his sacrifice.

"Just trust me…just get him into the TARDIS quickly! It's his only chance!" The Doctor repeated, clearing the way past the remains of the cybermen as they ran through the tunnel.

"But he's gone Doctor! We can't bring him back from the dead! Death wouldn't allow it," Marceline said quietly.

"Oh Finn…Finn why did you have to do that for me?" Flame princess had seen everything. She'd closed her eyes and expected to be hit with the energy pulse that the cyber leader had fired in a last ditch effort for victory.

What she hadn't expected, however, had been Finn throwing himself in the way of the blast at the last second and taking the full force of the impact for her, saving her life but ending his own. "I treated you worse than my own father for years and now this…and I will never be able to repay you."

"Just help me get him inside and I'll tell you how I going to do it." The Doctor called back, urgently, as they exited the tunnel and found themselves once again in the throne room. The cybermen had cleared a path through the rubble of the collapse and it was that which had allowed them to escape. Fumbling with the key in the lock of the door, the Doctor pushed the TARDIS doors open to allow Marceline and Jake to come through with Finn's lifeless body, none of them daring to look down at the scorch marks that blackened his normally blue shirt. They laid him down on the clear glass floor where Flame princess promptly threw herself down beside, years of pent up emotions finally surfacing.

"Come on, Finn, wake up!" She sobbed, tears of lava warping the floor. "Please wake up! I'm sorry! Sorry for everything I did. Wake up!"

"Flame princess, leave him be," the Doctor said, gently touching her shoulder. "Crying over his dead body won't do anything for you. His alive one, though, might offer you more support."

"Huh?" She sniffled, standing back up. "What are you saying?"

"Exactly what I promised. I'm going to get him back…by any means necessary." He turned to Marceline. "You mentioned Death, the person Death not the event. I'm willing to bet he can bring Finn back from the dead, having power over that kind of thing is in his job description." She just sighed.

"You don't just go to the land of the dead, or more specifically the 37th dead world let alone the others." He raised an eyebrow at this but stayed quiet.

"Death doesn't just let you take souls back to the real world," Bubblegum expanded. "You have to give him something of equal value in return.

"He puts a price on life? That's utterly disgusting but I'm willing to let it slide if he helps us."

"He won't," Marceline said dejectedly.

"Well I'm going to motivate him!" The Doctor proclaimed, leaping over Finn's body and up to the control panel. "Finn's death was a heroic one, just like the hero he is and will be. His death was also a sacrifice, a life for a life to be precise. So I'm going to offer him one."

"What does that mean, Doc?" Jake asked, calming himself.

"Exactly what I said. A life for a life. His life for my life."

"Doctor you can't be serious! It doesn't work like that!" Bubblegum said, shocked at his readiness to give up his own life for that of another.

"Why ever not?" Finn performed a sacrifice so I think this Death person would allow a substitute sacrifice in place of his."

"But, Doctor…"

"What are you going to say, Bonnie?" That my life is more valuable than his? To keep mine while Finn dies long before his time?" The Doctor said, refusing to look at her. "I've seen so much of death over the years…taken so many lives myself…this once, just this once let me give one back." Now he turned to face her. "It would be my honour to give up my life in place of Finn. A hero…the hero that I could never be."

"Doctor…" Bubblegum opened her mouth to protest but closed it again as no words came out.

"Thank you," he smiled. "We're here." He bounded down the stairs and made for the door. The other's made to follow him but he turned around and stopped them. "Where do you think you're going?"

"With you?" Marceline shrugged.

"This is something I have to do alone, please understand that. Plus you all need to look after Finn for me. He never deserves to be alone, even in death." He turned around and smoothed his jacket out. "I'll be back in no more than an hour. Keep Finn company for me until then." Then without further conversation he turned back and exited the time capsule in one swift motion.

The Doctor stepped outside and took in the view of the surrounding landscape. It was desolate, even for desert standards. The earth and the sky were one and the same, merging together on the horizon. The only thing that adorned the vast wasteland was the enormous quantity of skeletons. Some were animated and milling around aimlessly and some were just lying still, not even moving in the slightest.

_"How do they decide which ones get to be animated?" _He scuffed the ground with his shoe, sending up a cloud of dust and ash._ "Is there some sort of rotor for days of the week? Does time even pass normally down here? Lucky for me if it doesn't. An hour would be pretty meaningless and give me more time to convince this Death guy to hand over Finn's…soul. Never did believe in souls but their world, their rules." _The Doctor took one last look back over at the TARDIS then started walking towards the only source of light in the area, a building that appeared to be made entirely out of light. He'd only take about a hundred steps when he realised he wasn't alone. Stiffening, he announced to no one in particular:

"You know…not many people can sneak up on me so I've got to hand it to you for getting this far… but didn't I tell you to wait in the TARDIS?" Not a thing nor a person stirred. "Come on or do I have to use the sonic on you again? I know it's you, Marceline." The vampire queen materialised about twenty paces behind him.

"How did you know I was here?" She muttered, annoyed at having been caught.

"The oscillations in the air current didn't match up with…" He stopped himself at her blank expression. "…I'm just very good at guessing. Always have been, always will be…at least for the short remainder of my life anyway."

"Yeah that's actually what I wanted to talk to you about…" She said, looking behind to check if she herself was followed. "Plus you'll need a guide through this place if you want to reach Death's palace within the hour."

"Won't the others notice your absence?"

"Nah, I told them I needed some time alone so I just went round the corner and went invisible to sneak back out. They think I'm distraught over Finn."

"Are you?"

"…Let's just go."

"Well then," the Doctor twirled his sonic screwdriver around expertly before landing it in his pocket. "Take me to Death." Marceline floated silently past him, not replying to his attempt at humour. Several tense minutes passed as they climbed over several mounds of the white earth, not having the energy to talk during the climbs. When they reached the summit of the tallest one Marceline rounded on him.

"Why're you doing this?" She bared her fangs at him.

"I'm not sure I…"

"Cut it out, Doctor, we both know you could just pack up and leave right now and no one would blame you. Finn's death isn't on you, it wasn't your fault, and I don't care what you say! Those things, the cybermen murdered him and you murdered them. You avenged him so why're you still helping us?"

"You're my friends," He said carefully, taking in the view that the mound provided.

"You've only known us for, like, a few days tops!" She said, angrily. "Friendships take time to form."

"And you, of all people, know better than most."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" The vampire looked as if she was going to hurl the Timelord right off the face of the hill and into the stream below. "This isn't about me!"

"You're so old now, Marcy, you must be so tired." She flinched when he said 'Marcy'; it felt like an invasion of privacy. "You said friendships take time to form but you're over 1000 years old now. By that argument you should have a lot more friends than Jake and Bonnie, but you don't. Why?"

"That's none of your…"

"I'm sorry, that was uncalled for but I just wanted you to see the flaw in your argument." He said apologetically. "A friendship isn't defined by how long it takes but by what you do to form it. Bonnie was so good to me, helping me in my darkest hour, encouraging me to never give up despite everything that I did. She did the same for you, too." Marceline went wide eyed, and turned away quickly.

"I don't know what you mean. I don't like her and she doesn't like me, end of."

"Well at least half of that's wrong," The Doctor replied casually, deciding to make his way down the nether side of the hill.

"Hey wait!" Marceline floated after him, trying to supress her desperation. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that Bonnie misses you, being around you. Everything about you."

"She would never admit that! Not in a million years."

"But you don't deny it?" He looked over to her.

"Yes…no…stop trying to distract me! We're talking about you and Finn, not me and her," Marceline said, a little too quickly to dissipate any suspicion.

"She wants you back, dare I say it…even more than Finn." He realised his mistake too late and Marceline rounded on him, changing into her demonic form.

"How dare you say that?! She loved him more then she'll ever love me and now he's gone and you think she cares…cares even the slightest about me. I can't compete with Finn, even if he is dead and now you're going to bring him back…"

"And you want me to stop?"

"No…I'm immortal, or as close to it as I can be." She sighed. "Let Death take my life instead. He can take mine and I might still have a chance but you can't possibly survive. No regeneration, just death."

"I can't let you do tha...how do you know about regeneration?" He asked, softly. "And on the subject you're a vampire. Our people haven't got on in the past but you still seem to trust me…and the TARDIS being bigger on the inside didn't faze as much as it should have."

"…"

"Marceline…what aren't you telling me?" He pressed, to which the vampire queen just sighed again. Clearly the memory was causing her a great deal of pain to bring to the surface after so many centuries.

"A long, long time ago, before the creation of the candy kingdom, another object fell from the sky, just like yours. Exactly like yours. The man that came out also identified himself as a Timelord. I didn't trust him at first because of what he was. The Timelords murdered my people and I hated him for it." She paused, drawing in a deep breath as if would somehow compensate for the resurfacing of such old thoughts. "But he fell in love with my friend…the best friend I've ever had. I learned to trust him and when I saw you…you with your police box and…I somehow knew I could trust you. When I first saw your TARDIS I instantly thought it was him but it wasn't. I feigned shock at the 'bigger on the inside so Finn wouldn't get suspicious."

"Why didn't you mention this before?"

"He left…and took my friend with him. Although I'm very happy for them both it left a hole in my heart. Bonnie was the only one I had left but when we fell out I had nothing. Thinking about them brings so many bad memories to the surface. It was painful." She paused to brush some of her midnight hued strands of hair out of her eyes. "But now finally I can do something good. I can save Finn's life." The Doctor was having none of it (assuming the mystery Timelord to be one from this dimension so he paid him no further thought).

"This is my battle and you have so much more to live for than I do."

"You think I have something left to live for?"

"You think you don't?" He turned to her as they crossed the stream, ignoring the shouts from a nearby skull to drink the water. Stopping suddenly, he turned and faced Marceline, locking eyes with her, at least until she pushed him away.

"Stop doing that!"

"You…you really don't believe it, do you?"

"What?"

"You still think even after all this time that you have nothing to live for. That they don't care about you…Marcy, I'm so sorry."

"They don't, though!" She floated upside down now. "They don't trust me at all. They just think I'm a freak who can't be depended on when it really matters. I'm…I'm just everyone's problem. Ooo doesn't need me, they need Finn."

"You really can't see it, can you?"

"There's nothing to see."

"They care about you, even if you are too scared to see it. Over 1000 years of time and space and I've never met anyone who wasn't important. Even Jake, who's terrified of you, could never imagine a world without you. You don't need to be the most reliable person 'cos no one's perfect. Bonnie didn't mean what she said all those years ago. She never did and she has kicked herself every day for the past few hundred years over what happened."

"She…" the vampire hesitated. "She told you about our break up."

"No, well, yes. She wanted to connect our minds so she could see inside my mind for one of her experiments but the door was open from both sides. I could see everything in hers the same way she could see into mine. Everything she's ever felt towards family, friends. You. She would give anything just to be with you again."

"I-I don't believe you. Why should I trust you?" She tried to wriggle out of the conversation.

"Really? I've got nothing left to hide so take the advice of a dead man. Or dead man walking. That's what I'll be if even if I survive this."

"Huh?"

"There are people who want me dead for something I did, or rather am going to do. If I survive it's only a matter of time before they get me. That's fact. Prophecy. No way out for me, but there is a way out for Finn and I'm not going to be the one to deny him that chance."

"But I can…" She started.

"No, Marceline, you can't. Not now not ever. You have so much to live for. Friends who're like family to you. People who care about you. I have none of those things." She made as if to speak again but he held up his hand. "Please, grant me this one freedom. The right to die. It's my honour to give my life to someone like Finn who'll go on to do great things, save lives, and more. He is much, much more deserving of the 80 years he'll live then hundreds more that I will if I don't save him."

"But Doctor…!"

"We're here." They'd been so engrossed in heated discussion that Marceline hadn't even noticed the distinct change in scenery around them. Things had started to sprout from the earth and grow where the light from the palace touched. It wasn't a harsh light either. From far away it was blinding and radiant but as they'd drawn closer the light had mellowed into a soft glow of white that gave life to the greenery around it.

"Come on, we don't have much time left." Marceline muttered, pushing past the Doctor who'd stopped to inspect the flowers.

"Why? It's not like Finn can re-die if we don't get his soul quick enough." He said, following her inside.

"No but if his soul is separated from his body for too long then it won't be able to enter back inside."

"Well done." A new voice said. The two turned around to face the owner of the deep, husky voice. Standing behind them was a skeletal figure dressed in farmers clothing, complete with fedora and hoe to till the soil. "Miss Abadeer, it's been far too long," he chuckled.

"Death, this is important!" She exclaimed. "Do you know why we're here?"

"I know why **you're** here," he pointed a bony finger at the floating vampire. "Him, I'm not so sure about…" He turned to the Doctor. "I'm Death. I know everyone who inhabits this world, but not you. Why?"

"I'm not of this world. I came through…"

"The rift, yes, I thought as much."

"Do you know who created it?" He asked.

"Dark forces. Powerful, ancient forces that surpass even my power. It is no accident you're here."

"What do you mean?"

**"In which the truth of all things lie,**

**The most faithful friends will surely fly.**

**In making sure the battle's won,**

**At your own hand the end will come.**

**A puzzle scattered into things of eight,**

**And solving shall seal their only fate.**

**The answer lies behind closed doors**

**In knowing the choice was never yours."**

"Please don't tell me that was a prophecy. I hate not being able decide my own actions."

"That's just **a** prophecy…I'm not even sure if it applies to you but you look like prophecy material."

"Can't you change…?"

"Sorry, but your role has already been decided…but hey…" Death remarked. "That's all in the future…or the past. Back to the point…I've worked out why you're both here, now."

"Finn." All three of them said at once. Marceline was the first to speak after the slight awkward pause.

"Can you give him to us?"

"Miss Abadeer, you of all people know how it works." Death said, inspecting the soil. "A trade of equal value must be made for the soul of the dead, and Finn the human is a one of a kind soul. His price is very high indeed."

"Couldn't we just have a music off to decide?" The vampire brought out her axe bass and showed him. Death shook his head, causing a slight rattling sound to be heard.

"Sorry but you know as well as I do that this ain't no princess plant we're dealing with. Finn, or any complex living thing requires more than just beating me on the stage. A life for a life."

"Then take mine," the Doctor spoke at last. "My life for his."

"But Doctor!"

"Stay out of this, Marceline!" He warned.

"Yes, miss Abadeer..." Death concurred. "You cannot interfere in a willing transaction between participants of a soul exchange." He turned back to the Doctor. "You know what this entails, don't you?"

"Yes." He nodded.

"If you go through with this then your own life essence will be forfeit for Finn's. The process will drain you of your life until the equivalent of a normal, human life span has been taken and used to restore Finn so that he may live his life to its full capacity. All 80 or so years. You cannot hope to survive the trauma. Will you still do this?"

"In a heartbeat."

"Impressive." Death said, trying to read the Doctor's face. "I've not encountered many who would do such a thing. It doesn't matter though. Are you ready?" The Doctor nodded.

"Always."

"Then I shall do as you request. A life for a life."

"Wait, Doctor, no!" Marceline screamed." But Death had already begun. Summoning his hoe, he tapped the centre of the Doctor's chest. Almost immediately he yelled out in pain as golden ripples began to surge through his body

"Stop!" Marceline yelled and tried to strike Death with her bass; he simply waved his free hand and materialised a wall of light that prevented the vampire interfering. "NO!" She cried, banging her fist against the barrier, watching helplessly as the Doctor fell to his knees.

The golden ripples became waves and started to flow out of his body, circling both Doctor and Death as the latter summoned as tiny sphere of energy and allowed the Doctor's power to amass around it. As the flow increased, The Doctor fell even further down, barely able to keep himself upright, causing Marceline to bang even harder on the wall. The sphere Death had summoned was now reacting to the energy, growing in size and now illuminating the area around it, pulsing gold with pure life force.

"We're done," Death said as a brilliant flash of light was emitted from all around them. When Marceline opened her eyes, she could see the sphere of energy had nearly tripled in size and was hovering steadily above the ground, casting a soft glow on the grey soil below it. "The soul of Finn the human is yours, Miss Abadeer." She ran over to it, (the barrier having dissipated when the light faded) and inspected it, not quite believing him.

"This is Finn?" She asked gesturing to the sphere.

"Only his life force. You need to return it to his physical body and combine them together to get the true Finn to return. You best hurry though…" Death pointed to the Doctor who had collapsed completely and lay silently on the dry earth. "Our man here gave the equivalent of 80 human years to re-energize the soul but it's unstable at best. You've only got a few minutes until it…"

"Wait!" The vampire crouched closely down to the Doctor's body. "Did you say 80 years?"

"That's what he gave up, yeah. Is it important?" Death enquired.

"Oh that's brilliant!" She half cried, half laughed.

"What?! What did I miss?!"

"He's already over 1000 years old. Another 80 years is nothing to him." She flipped his body over so his face was pointing up. "Isn't that right, Doctor?" His eyes snapped open, much to Death's dismay.

"Ah, you caught me!" He laughed, standing up with some difficulty. "I was wondering how long I could get away with that. Oh well." Death threw down his hoe in annoyance.

"What? How can you still be alive? You should be dead but you don't look any older or withered."

"Timelord," he smiled back.

"But I thought you were human!" Death said, sulking slightly. "The transfer shouldn't have worked otherwise."

"Humans and Timelords are very similar, at least superficially. I thought you could tell the difference, being Death and all?"

"It's been a long week…lots of paper work." Death sighed, suddenly becoming serious. "But you violated the contract. A life for a life."

"No you said my life essence. That doesn't mean I had to die to give Finn what he deserved."

"You…you cheated me!"

"In about a minute nearly 3 million life forces will become available to you, courtesy of myself. I think that more than covers it." The Doctor scooped up the sphere and took Marceline's hand.

"You don't get to decide the terms of the agreement!" Death argued.

"Take it or leave it," he said, still walking away. "It's the best you can do."

"Was that a threat?!"

"Only if you want it to be." Death watched the two walking back across the river and over the hill of greying soil. While he was tempted to remove them for disruption and loop-holing his terms he knew a good deal when he saw it. Though there would be a mountain of paperwork to fill out, 3 million new souls more than made up for the loss of one, even if it was Finn the human's. It didn't matter to him anyway, the soul was useless now. The hour had passed and the soul wouldn't be able to enter Finn's body, at least not without help.

* * *

**A/N: The Doctor is refering to the silence and their plot to kill him (this is pre-time of the Doctor for him). The mystery Timelord may or may not be a mystery if you've also read "Be my beginning" by 'I am red bull' (also in the DW/AT crossover section).**

**The riddle is one of my own creation but what does it refer to? You'll find out (eventually). **

**Be sure to review if you want to. Next chapter up on Friday.**


	22. Final sacrifice

**A/N With my internet playing up I wasn't sure I'd be able to get this up in time but I got lucky. Two shout-outs now. One to 'TheOneAndOnly1993' for some great feedback and support. 2nd to 'Kirbyfan1996' for getting the reference to the 11th Doctor story 'Borrowed time'. Props to you both! And now you may read on!**

* * *

"Doctor, you're back!" Bubblegum could have hugged him there and then if not for Jake and Flame princess's barrage of questions.

"Did you get him?"

"Where is he?"

"What's that light?"

"Yeah Doctor…" Marceline walked through the door at the far end of the corridor. "What's with the light show?" The Doctor stifled a laugh, realising that Marceline's absence hadn't been spotted. It was only a case of becoming invisible and sneaking past them while they were distracted by the orb of light, and then reappearing as if coming from another room.

"Oh this?" He gestured to the glowing sphere. "This is Finn!" There was silence.

"But Finn's down there," Flame princess pointed to the body they'd placed in a makeshift shroud.

"Yeah but he's also here," He pointed again to the sphere. "This is Finn's…how to put it in your terms…" he scratched the back of his neck."

"Finn's soul," Bubblegum beat him to the punch. "While Finn's actually body is there on the floor, his mind and memories and other things are contained within that ball."

"Excellent work, Bonnie!" She blushed slightly at his words causing Marceline to fold her arms to prevent herself from hitting him slightly. "Everything you know and love about him is right here but first," he held up his hand to stop them interrupting. "I think we've overstayed our welcome so let's return to the candy kingdom before doing anything." The Doctor tossed the sphere to Jake who nearly dropped it, much to everyone's exasperation, and bounded up the stairs to the console. As he was flipping the countless switches to take off, Bubblegum realised something.

"You said a life for a life. You would exchange your life for his so how're you still here?"

"Oh you know me…" He continued dancing around the console, starting the time rotor in the process. "…I'm full of surprises." Bubblegum placed her hands on her hips.

"Come on, Doctor, you've got to tell us!"

"Let's just say I made a deal with Death."

"That…that's just as vague." she argued.

"Basically he cheated him." Marceline spoke up

"Huh?" The group turned to her. "What?"

"He sacrificed 80 years of his life so that Finn could use them but he didn't die in the process, effectively cheating death."

"Marcy…how do you know?" Bubblegum said, suspicious of not only this new information but of her logical and insightful thinking. _"She's a lot cleverer than she lets on, that's for sure…"_

"Who cares?!" Jake said gleefully, stretching up to the upper level to where the Doctor stood. "You gave up 80 years just so my Bro could be alive?!"

"Yes, well I suppose I did…" The Doctor was cut off as Jake hugged him, knocking all the wind out of him. "Jake as much as I appreciate the hug I don't want us to get flung off into the continuum so if you could release me…"

"Oh Glob I'm sorry!" The yellow canine retracted the stretchy hug. "Thanks all the same."

"No problem, Jakey," he replied, sliding down the hand rail to the floor below. "Let's get our Finn back, eh?" There was affirmation all around, except for Flame princess.

"Why did you do it, though…really?" She softly said, not daring to meet his eye.

"Do I need a reason?" He said gently.

"Yes…people always have reasons." She replied just as softly. At this he crossed over to her and said:

"Do I look like people? Trust me, I'm the Doctor…" Flame princess looked up and met his gaze, his green eyes meeting her amber ones. He smiled warmly. "Now let's bring Finn back, for you. Jake, hand me the sphere."

Jake handed it over all too eagerly. Crouching down beside Finn's body and taking his soul in his other hand, he let go of it. The sphere began to pulse faintly before sinking down into Finn's chest. The glowing stopped. Then there was nothing. No light. No life. No Finn. "No…" The Doctor murmured.

"Doc, why isn't it working?" Jake wailed, annoyed at being so close and yet failing at the last hurdle.

"We were too late," Marceline stated, without emotion. "We missed the window. Finn's soul and body can't combine properly anymore…we're too late."

"Doctor, you promised…" Flame princess whispered, barely audible over the quiet hum of the engines . "…You promised." He scrunched up his hair in his hands and began to pace.

"Yes…yes, I did." He stopped and turned back slowly. "I'll have to do it."

"Do what?" Bubblegum asked, hesitantly, forever intrigued and yet fearful of what he would have to say. The Doctor began to pace again, this time slower.

"It's true that we missed the window. Finn's soul and body have been separated too long and now aren't compatible anymore. But if I were to fuse them together, physically, using a sort of defibrillator reaction to allow them to combine once more…then he would be saved. Of course it has to be a very specific type of energy…"

"Life energy," Bubblegum finished. But none of us have the means to extract it. Flame princess cleared her throat. The Doctor stopped and looked her dead in the eye.

"No. I know what you're thinking but no."

"Why not?" She pleaded. "We know it works. It powered the cybermen and there were millions of those. Why not just one more?"

"Well that's just it," He sighed, taking his head in his hands. "The cybermen outwitted us even in death."

"What do you mean?"

"They drained you, Flame princess. The medical staff in the fire kingdom were only just able to save you. If you were to give any more of your life force you will die."

"But Finn will be alive then!" She insisted.

"Then we're back at square one," Bubblegum said, ever so slightly vexed. "Finn would be distraught if he woke up and you weren't there. It would drive him insane. There must be another way!"

"There is another way," the Doctor said delicately.

"Doctor, no!" Marceline shouted, the realisation of what he was going to do hitting her like a ton of bricks. "Not again, you'll die this time!"

"What are you talking about?" Bubblegum enquired, looking back between the furious vampire queen and the solemn Timelord. It was the latter who spoke first.

"When a Timelord is dying, we can sort of cheat death and bring ourselves back to life by repairing every single cell in our bodies at once. We call it our regeneration energy. I could use mine to save Finn."

"But you can't!" Marceline shouted, trying to hold back tears, and failing.

"Why ever not?" Bubblegum asked, resisting the urge to comfort the sobbing vampire.

"I'm old now, so old," the Doctor said solemnly. "I've used up all my regenerations and I can never do it again. Except…" he took time to look around the room once more. "I do still have some residual energy left over. I've used it in the past to heal injuries like a broken wrist, so I think it can be used to save Finn.

"Doctor, this isn't a broken wrist." Jake said.

"Yes…Marceline's right…if I do this then I've got no chance of survival. Or at least an impossibly small one.

"Doctor, no!" Marceline objected once more. "I want Finn back as much as anyone but there's got to be another way!"

"Sorry."

"But!"

"Can't. Not this time. But that's ok…" he paused slightly. "…because you've got to keep moving forward, onward to all the people that you're going to be. Strong people…good people. People that I could never be. Finn deserves to be at your sides when you realise this. He will not forget it in the same way that I will never forget. I will never forget when the Doctor was me." He paused again, slowly letting his bowtie fall to the ground after undoing it.

"This time I'll bring him back. And yes…" The Doctor looked straight at Flame princess. "That **is** a promise." Marceline made another attempt to object but stopped when she noticed his hand has started to glow.

"Doctor, you're starting to freak me out," Jake said, taking a step back from him. "What is that?"

"It's started." He closed his hand and the glowing ceased. "Regeneration…but not for me. For Finn." Uncurling his hand once more revealed the golden glow of regeneration. "You all need to keep back no matter what happens." They were all too mesmerised by the light to answer, which was spreading out from his hand to the rest of his arm, though not burning his sleeve. "It all disappears, doesn't it? Everything you are, like breath on a mirror. Well, maybe me but not you. Not any of you. Not Finn. You never deserve to be forgotten." The light enveloped his face, coursing through his veins like starlight. Turning to Bubblegum directly, he said: "Keep her safe," gesturing to where Marceline had started forwards.

Bubblegum nodded and wrapped her arm around the vampire queen to stop her interfering. The glowing became more animated and started to flow around his body, like steam evaporating out of a kettle. The group were forced to shield their eyes, Flame princess included, as the Doctor spread his arms out wide and let the fire engulf every inch of him.

"No, let go of me, Bonnie!" Marceline cried out to Bubblegum, but the pink princess didn't reply, transfixed by the light. Peeking through the gaps in her fingers she could just make out the Doctor's light infused body turn towards Finn's.

He slowly moved his arms out in front of him and began to direct the light away from himself and into Finn's form. The glare now became unbearably intense and Bubblegum was forced to look away completely, dragging a kicking Marceline with her.

The brightness increased until the whole room was ablaze with light, making it impossible to see anything, but Bubblegum thought she could just make out screaming; Whether it was Finn's or the Doctor's was unclear but it chilled her, all of them, to the bone none the less. The light began to die but once more it flashed, just as bright if not brighter, and then there was nothing. No screaming, no light, no nothing. Jake was the first to open his eyes. Adjusting to the now darkened room he could just make out figure.

"Bro, is that you?" The figure walked towards him, confused at his surroundings, bear hat in tatters.

"Jake it's me. I'm…I'm alive." Jake snapped fully awake and dashed up the steps, hugging Finn like there was no tomorrow.

"Don't you ever do that to me again!"

"Dude, I was only gone for, like, 5 minutes." Finn laughed, hugging his brother back. "And how am I back at all? I swear I…"

"Don't say it!" Jake said, pulling him closer.

"Finn, you're ok?!" Marceline sprang out Bubblegum's grasp. "He did it! The Doctor really did it!"

"What did he do?!" Finn said, pulling the vampire into a tight embrace. "How am I alive?"

"He…where is he?" They looked around the console, noticing that the Doctor was nowhere to be found.

"He sacrificed his own life for yours," Bubblegum said, receiving a hug from Finn, as well.

"Now hold on, just a sec, wait a minute!" A voice echoed through the chamber. "You do realise, Bonnie, that it's only a sacrifice if I died, and trust me…" a familiar figure stepped into view from the shadows. "I'm not doing that anytime soon."

"Doctor…h-how…?" Marceline stammered.

"I said there was a chance didn't I?" He answered.

"But you said that…"

"I know…but my death lies elsewhere in time and space, far from here on a world named Trenzalore. I knew that for that fact to stand true, the laws of the universe wouldn't let me die here and now. Up until my time, the time of the Doctor, I will always have a chance no matter how small. And that's why I'm still here. Not my time, yet." He took in the perplexed looks of his audience before saying: "Now enough about me! Finn!" He walked up to the human and shook his hand vigorously. "Good to have you back, in the flesh.

"Thanks, Doc," he paused. "Everybody says that you sacrificed yourself for me, why?"

"I'm not dead so technically not a sacri…"

"Doc, please?" Finn said, looking him in the eye.

"…Because you're needed here. These people, this place…needs you. You will go on and live a full and amazing life, a human life. That's something I could never let you give up, even for her?" He let go of his hand and gently turned him to face Flame princess who'd remained silent ever since he'd revealed himself.

"FP?"

"Finn?"

"You're ok!" The said in unison, then blushed when they realised what had happened.

"You…saved me…"

"Yeah, I guess…" Finn scratched the back of his neck, suddenly becoming interested in his shoes.

"Finn?"

"Yeah?"

"…"

"…"

"…" Then without warning Flame princess ran towards him and embraced him, overcome with a whole rainbow of emotions ranging from elation, to guilt, to sorrow, and back to happiness again.

"FP…burning…me," Finn gasped, his already singed clothes now smoking once more. She let go quickly.

"Oh Glob I'm sorry! I didn't mean to…"

"It's ok, I forgive you…" A slightly awkward silence ensued, as although Finn and Flame princess wanted to embrace and hold each other after all the things that had happened, nature still prevented them from doing so. Everyone else shuffled awkwardly about as the happy reunion was cut short…until the Doctor decided to intervene.

"I think I might be able to help," He said helpfully, walking over to the console.

"What do you mean, Doc?" Jake asked. In response the Doctor flicked a switch on the console and an odd looking pair of head phones dropped down from the ceiling.

"Chameleon arch. It can be used to rewrite the biology of any living organism into another. Like Timelord into human or human into potato. Not sure you want to do that but I digress. I could use this to let you and Flame princess touch, if you want."

_"What's a potato? Is it like a chemical or something? _Wait so you can convert Finn into a fire elemental?!" Bubblegum said. "That's amazing!"

"In theory, yes, but that isn't what I was suggesting," he said, scratching his chin.

"Huh? Then what?" Marceline asked.

"Well, on full power I could easily convert Finn into one of Flame princess's kind, but that would probably inconvenience quite a lot of you if he was made of fire." They nodded wordlessly. "But on a lower power setting I can keep your human biology, Finn, but 'up' your resistance to being burned by taking a sample of DNA from Flame princess. You can remain human, and also be able to touch her freely. I can do it if you want." Finn looked at Flame princess, stars in their eyes.

"Yes, yes of course…but why are you still helping me?"

"I just want you to be happy," he replied. "Isn't that enough?"

"…Is it safe?" Bubblegum queried. "I've done enough experiments in molecular engineering to know how dangerous it can be."

"Trust me, it's perfectly fine. Like, 99%. Well…85%. Well…"

"Doc, it's fine. Just do it." Finn interjected. To say Flame princess stared **at **Finn would've been an understatement. She stared through him, **into **him.

"Finn…you would do that for me? Despite the risks, despite the danger…you would change for me?"

"Only if you want me to."

"Of course! Why would you think otherwise?"

"Oh…I thought that because I messed up before when your dad tried to overthrow you and I wasn't…"

"Finn, I forgive you. I forgave you for that years ago," she mumbled. "It was just as much my fault as yours."

"Don't say that! Look…maybe we both did some things wrong but…maybe…the future can be different. I could be different, for you."

"You would change to be with me?"

"No…I **am **changing for **us**. Together." She blushed and he gave a small smile to himself.

_"When did I become so smooth?"_

"Finn, this process will hurt. A lot, and I speak from experience," the Doctor said, taking his turn to stare into Finn.

"Come one, Doc," He said, removing his bear hat, letting his golden blonde mane hang free. "Every one of us in this room knows that love hurts." Nods all around, with even Marceline giving an imperceptible one. "Besides I already died once, and that junk hurt quite a bit. This'll be easy compared with that."

"That's the spirit!" The Doctor's jovial demeanour returned once again, helping the group to relax after the drama of the past few hours. "Right, Flame princess, please spit into this bag." He held up a regular looking plastic sachet, tinted a metallic grey colour.

"Um, why?" She looked nervously at the bag, almost afraid it would bite her or something.

"DNA sample, silly," Bubblegum said, earning the Doctor's smile of approval once more.

"Yes I'm going to need some of your DNA so I can give Finn the resistance to fire you possess. You're not just made of fire, you're also protected against it.

"Yes, yes that's true but won't I just melt the bag?" Her nerves were replaced by scepticism at the idea.

"This is a vibranium based super polymer elastascine composite alloy…it's very tough is the bottom line," he said taking note of the blank expressions. "Just spit in the bag so we can convert the human. Never thought I'd have to say that again…, right, bag, spit, now! She obliged and (unsurprising to him but amazingly to everyone else) the bag failed to melt.

"That's way cool, doc!" Jake said, clapping his hands childishly.

"You haven't even got to the best part yet," he mock scolded. Pressing a few more buttons here and there (Bubblegum suspected for dramatic effect) and pulling down a second lever, he said: "Finn, after this there's no turning back. Do you still want me to do this?"

"Man, you make it sound as if it'll be a huge change. All your doing is making me fire proof, right?"

"It'll play havoc with you trying to get a tan…" There was silence before they both burst out laughing before resuming a business like atmosphere. "Put the head phones on," The Doctor commanded. Finn obeyed without question and was soon decked out in slightly eccentric pair of black ear mufflers.

"Any last words, Weenie?"

"Marcy, I'm not going anywhere!" He said, feigning annoyance.

"It's more fun to pretend," the vampire queen reasoned, drawing looks from both Jake and princess Bubblegum.

"Good luck, Finn!" Bubblegum said, hugging him tight, with Jake playing third wheel.

"Right…geronimo!" The Doctor emptied the bag onto a special panel and proceeded to pull a third lever, causing Finn to clutch his head in agony, his every cell being augmented. Sparks erupted out of the console, causing the group to jump back from him.

"Is it supposed to do that?!" Flame princess yelled.

"Doctor, that doesn't look safe at all!" Bubblegum added, taking cover on the other side of the console.

"Don't worry, he's fine!" You're fine, right Finn?!" He declared, with slightly more confidence than he actually had.

"NNH…NNGHYAHHH…YES! KEEP GOING!" He yelled out. His whole body was on fire, quite literally as Flame princess's DNA mixed with his to form the first human/ fire elemental hybrid. The glow (while nowhere near as bright as the Doctor's) was still intense and gave reason for everyone to shield their eyes while the changes within Finn took place. But no sooner had it started did it stop. The sparks and shaking ceased and Finn stopped clutching his head, raising it to observe the others.

"How do I look?" He asked.

"Dude, you look…completely normal," Jake said. "You look exactly the same as before."

"Aw, man, that stinks. I thought there'd be some cool side effect or something," He moaned. "I just feel like my regular self. How can I be sure it worked?"

"Actually…" Jake took a moment to sniff the air. "You smell like burnt toast."

"Huh…" Finn took a moment to smell under his arm. "Yeah I guess I do. That doesn't mean anything, though. How can I be sure?"

"Well…" the Doctor appeared from behind the console, deeming it to be safe to venture out. "…there's really only one way to find out." Finn looked around until Flame princess caught his eye, her beauty becoming all the more apparent to him by the second.

_"Whoa did I just think that?"_ Finn thought. He noticed he'd started to walk towards her, as if in a trance and his legs had gotten a mind of their own. He had no control over his body, like an automatic response, but somehow it felt right. Bringing his hand up to her face, he gently brushed his hand against her bare cheek. He recoiled, expecting to be burned, but, to his delight, none came. Tears filling his eyes he looked up to the Doctor, he giving a look that spoke a thousand words. The Timelord nodded silently in return before gesturing to his other friends to follow him, to leave Finn and Flame princess alone. Once they were gone he spoke:

"FP, I'm sorry. Sorry for everything that I did that hurt you."

"Finn, I already told you I was just as much to blame. I forgive you," her voice was barely above a whisper. "You were there for me when no one else was. The first person to see the good in me." She took a step closer so they were nose to nose. "Finn...we've got the whole future ahead us and you saved my life in more ways than one…I-I love you."

"FP…I love you too." It was like a dream come true, for both of them. Sleepless nights and constant heartache had finally paid off and neither of them could believe it was real. Instead of pinching himself like he usually did, Finn raised his hand again and gently caressed her face, this time taking the time to marvel at its silky, smooth texture for the first time.

Raising her own hand, Flame princess did the same to his, admiring how soft, yet strong his facial features were and taking the time to run her hand over every single ridge and crevice, savouring the moment. Time seemed to stand still. Then, without another word, they brought their heads as close together as they could and did something both of them had dreamed of but had never imagined possible. They kissed. His lips met hers and for the first time, without the aid of charcoal or barrier, completely and naturally…they kissed.

* * *

**A/N Finally! They get to kiss after so many years! I had way too much fun writing this and is jam packed full of references to other things. The 'vibranium' is a reference to Marvel comics (Captain America's shield is made of it). **

**The Doctor mentions he speaks from experience ('Human nature'). The Doctor's speech when he saves Finn includes a lot of reference and paraphrasing from 'the time of the Doctor'. There's also references to 'Eleventh hour' ("Do I look like people") and 'The angels take Manhattan' (Fixing a broken wrist.)**

**I really hope you enjoyed this but it isn't over yet! Still a few more chapters to go (lucky you). Please review if you have the time (it means the world to me).**


	23. Goodbye, forgotten hero

Vwoorp! Vwoorp! The TARDIS landed in one of the countless back streets of the candy kingdom, much to the occupant's dismay. The Doctor had suggested they return to Bubblegum's lab so he could set a few things in order but, as ever, the TARDIS was being difficult to control.

What was also difficult to control was Finn and Flame princess's newfound love. After 15 minutes the Doctor and co. had decided to return to the control room in the belief that the lovebirds would be done with all the kissing. What had happened had been nothing short of awkward as, not only had the couple not stopped locking lips, but they didn't seem to care that they had an audience.

"Don't you think they look cute together?"

"Marcy, that's too distasteful!" Bubblegum scolded, batting the vampire across the back of her head. It had taken Jake to practically lever them apart with his stretching powers so the rest of the group could feel less intrusive. He'd also imposed a ban of at least 5ft between them so they wouldn't be tempted to start again, much to their displeasure.

"Come on, you and Lady smooch all the time!" Finn argued.

"Yeah but not when people are watching!" Jake replied defensively. "Save it for the bedroom!...Wait I didn't mean…!" He was too late and Flame princess was already shooting Finn some very suggestive looks, which he returned, much to everyone else's discomfort.

"Oh man…" Jake held his head in his hands. In an effort to make everyone feel slightly less awkward, princess Bubblegum addressed the Doctor.

"Doctor, you missed!" Bubblegum complained. "This isn't my lab!"

"Oi, just be glad we're still on the same planet…or time period," he rubbed the back of his neck. "In any case you get some free exercise to walk all the way up there, don't thank me."

"Trust me we won't. Exercise is evil!" Jake moaned.

"Nah, you'll love it when you get used to it," the Doctor insisted. "I'll give anyone a free Jammy Dodger who beats me to the lab!" He yelled, suddenly full of energy, running down the steps and out of the capsule.

"What's a Jammy Dodger?" Finn asked, momentarily distracted from Flame princess's coy behaviour.

"Never mind, but we'd better follow him. He said he wants to set some stuff in order and I want to know what that means," Bubblegum replied, also leaving the TARDIS hurriedly. Marceline raised an eyebrow at Jake before following her, taking out her umbrella in the process.

"Wait, Marcy, don't leave me with…" He turned back to see the lovebirds at it again. "You two out now!"

"But, Jake…"

"No buts! I'm not leaving you two alone, especially not in here." He grabbed both of them with his stretchy arms and hauled them out of the door's, still intertwined with each other. When he got to the outside he was forced to drop them out of pure shock. The candy people were back. Throughout the streets of the kingdom, in every house and car, in shops and in the square, they were back. The rest of the group were likewise dumbstruck.

"Whaaa…?" Princess Bubblegum stood slack jawed. "B-but…they died…the cybermen…what is going on?!" Leaving the others behind, she stumbled over to the square where a familiar piñata was floating. "Manfried!"

"Oh hey there princess!" He called in his regular cheery voice. We were wondering if you were still alive." At this, the surrounding candy people flocked over to the group, overjoyed to see their princess finally return.

"Wha…? Yes of course I'm alive! How…how is everybody still here? You all disappeared. We thought the cybermen…"

"Oh yes the cybermen," Manfried repeated happily. "Peppermint butler came to us one day a few months back, though now that I think about it…" the horse piñata scrunched up his face in concentration. "…he looked a bit different than usual. His face was all metal and stuff but anyway…" His regular cheery face returned. "He claimed you had abandoned us and weren't protecting us anymore. He also announced that a new kingdom called 'the Cyberiad' had offered us security and independence from you. He offered to make us…what was the word he used…upgraded, that's it!" Bubblegum took a moment to close her eyes and breathe deep, holding her hands pressed hard against her temples. The gravity of what she was hearing was too large, even for her to comprehend. The rest of the gang were likewise struggling with this titanic wave of information. They listened none the less, all too eager to discover more.

"But you didn't…" she started.

"Oh no, princess," Manfried said. "We said that our place was with you, even if you'd disappeared into your lab for a few months. Whatever you may think of us princess, we're not stupid. We knew that you must've been working on something big in there and we respected it." The group was shocked. They'd always assumed the candy people to border on mentally deficient and inept but maybe they were wrong.

"We told Peppermint butler that we would stick by you no matter what," Mr. Cupcake added, joining Manfried. "But he got angry and stormed off. Later that day we heard strange noises and figured he had returned with…more persuasive techniques."

"But how did you survive?" She asked, still not believing a word she was hearing.

"This man told us that we should hide in the sewer until they'd gone, to make it look as if we'd been killed. The Gumball guardians weren't so lucky. They opted to stay and protect you. We never saw them again." Cupcake continued. Bubblegum recalled the cyber planner's words about the disintegration…and tears filled her eyes.

_"They died…protecting me. After everything I did…" _A familiar vampire came up behind her and allowed her shoulder to be cried on, which Bubblegum unceremoniously decided to do.

"How did you survive for nearly a year in the sewer? What did you eat?" Marceline asked, ignoring the crying princess that was currently ruining her t-shirt with tears.

"Candy!" Manfried said. "Everything thing here is made of candy, even the sewers. We may have to replace some of the sections, though." Bubblegum managed a small laugh through the tears and straightened up.

"You…you all remained loyal to me even though I abandoned you?"

"Yes, princess!" Starchy said, walking out from Mr. Cupcake's shadow. "We know you've got our best interests at heart and we will always stand by you, no matter what."

"Wait hold on now!" Jake interrupted. "You mentioned a man was there, the guy who told you to go into the sewers in the first place. What was his name?"

"Oh…we never asked and he never said," Starchy admitted. "But I did take down some details about him just in case." He took out a small notepad (from where it was anyone's guess). "He looked a lot like the princess and Finn in terms of structure and complexion. He sometimes used words and phrases that didn't make sense to us. He waved his arms a lot and told us to run on more than one occasion. He also wore these weird clothes…" he finished. "Sorry but that's all I have. He was only there for a few minutes and then disappeared again. Strange…does that help you in any way?" Jake, Bubblegum and Marceline all looked at each other.

"No…" Bubblegum said under her breath. "It's not possible."

"Hey that kinda sounds like the Do…"

"Nope, sorry Starchy." Bubblegum cut Jake off and dragged him away. "I'll throw a celebratory party later today in honour of the candy people's return but I have to do a few things first."

"No that's fine, princess," Manfried said.

"Yes, take care princess!" Mr. Cupcake said as she pulled Jake and Marceline to the other side of the fountain. When they were safely out of earshot Jake rounded on her.

"What was that for?"

"We don't know it's the Doctor! It could be some other guy!"

"Oh come one, Bub-bubs," Marceline snorted, amazed and infuriated at the princess's denial. "We all know it's him."

"We still can't tell them! The Doctor told us he didn't want to be acknowledged by anyone and we have to respect that," she reasoned.

"PB, he saved the lives of the entire candy kingdom single-handedly! And we don't even know how!" Jake exclaimed.

"He…he must have used the TARDIS, it's the only explanation," Bubblegum said but this drew blank looks. "Really? Fine…he travelled back in time and warned the candy people of the cybermen. Clear?"

"No…" Jake said. "We've been with him, like, the whole time! How did he slip away and do all that?"

"He's got a time machine, Jake!" She hissed so the candy citizens wouldn't overhear. "He could have done it at any point when we weren't there. He might even not have done it yet. He could still do it in the future, to go to the past, to make them exist in the present!"

"Ok now you've lost me," Marceline said, floating around lazily. "Hey where is he anyway?" Looking around, they realised they hadn't seen him since he left TARDIS.

"Yeah and where's Finn and FP?" Jake said. "Did they follow hi… oh there they are."

"Huh?" The girls said in unison. Jake jerked a thumb behind his head to where one could just make out to figures making out behind one of the cotton trees.

"Damn, I can't let those two out of sight even for a second." Jake sighed loudly, almost dramatically so. "They must've run off in the confusion. Hey lovebirds!" He yelled, making the pair jump. "Could you quit that just for a sec and come over here?" Finn was disappointed but was reassured by Flame princess that they could always continue later, much to his delight.

"What's up, Bro?" He said when they arrived. "This better be important."

"Yeah, the Doctor's disappeared," Marceline said, noticing Finn's hair looking more dishevelled than usual.

"Relax, Marcy. He probably just went up to the lab like he said he would."

"Of course!" Bubblegum smacked her head against her palm. "I got so caught up by the candy people that I completely forgot!"

"Yeah, how are the Candy peo…"

"Time travel," Jake said. "Don't ask."

"Huh?"

"You'll get used to it. Just nod when she stops for air," Marceline consoled him. "Anyway let's go see what he's up to. I'd hate to miss out on a party."

"I'd highly doubt he's throwing a par…" Bubblegum was cut off as the vampire used her free hand to grab her and wrench her off the ground towards the balcony of the lab. Jake just sighed and used his stretching powers to follow them, with Finn and Flame princess clinging on.

"Marcy, what're you doing!? Put me down!" Bubblegum screamed, scrunching her eyes shut.

"What?" Marceline laughed. "Like this?" Her grip slackened on the pink princess.

"NO! Just…argh! You butt!" She yelled, holding on for dear life. The vampire queen just laughed harder and set them gently down on the balcony outside of her lab. A few moments passed before the Marceline broke the silence.

"Bonnie, you can let go now." Marceline said gently. Bubblegum opened her eyes slowly and realised she was still digging her nails into the vampires sides. She sprang back apologetically.

"Sorry…hey, wait you're the one that should be sorry!" She started, placing her hands on her hips. "Next time tell me before you're about to do that." Expecting some sort of insolence in return, Bubblegum kept her rigid stance for a few moments before realising Marceline was just standing awkwardly in front of her, looking away, not saying anything. The awkwardness hung in the air for a few seconds before Jake stretched up alongside them and remarked impatiently:

"Come on, the Doctor might be done by now! I don't want to miss any crazy fun stuff he might be doing in there. Let's roll." Marceline looked around (though avoiding Bubblegum) to reply but stopped mid reply. Her pupils dilated and she supressed the urge to burst out laughing. She pointed at Jake. "What? Do I have something on my face?" He said.

Marceline shifted her finger to slightly behind the yellow canine. "What? Did I forget to…Glob damn it not again!" Flame princess and Finn were locking lips yet again, not even bothering to get of Jake's back to do so this time. "I turn around for one second, ONE SECOND and you two are at it again?" Instead of getting mad he made a face, which Bubblegum could have sworn was one of defeat. "Come on you two, let's go see what the Doctor wants." They complied graciously, but insisted on holding hands. Bubblegum giggled, all of Marceline's awkwardness lost and pushed open the double doors that let into the lab. At least she thought it was her lab.

It could have been a completely different place; it looked utterly foreign to say the least and was much cleaner than the last time she set eyes on it. Everything that had been destroyed by the Doctor's crash landing had been replaced, and looked brand new as well. Even the nether side of the wall had been repaired and painted over and the shelves that lined the walls were now filled to the brim with new textbooks and science kits, some of which she could only guess at the function. The floor was now spotless, all remnants of her earlier broken experiments swept away and recreated on the newly polished worktop. It looked like a completely new room.

"Told you I'd fix it," a voice called. It belonged to the Doctor who stepped out from inside the TARDIS (which was now parked rather more neatly in the corner than before.) "All spick and span, good as new. I trust all is to your liking?"

"Doctor…this is amazing!" Bubblegum could find no other words to justify the situation. She quickly darted across the room to one of the several new book shelves and took one out at random. It was brand new. '"Fantastic beasts and where to find them.'" She ran her hands over the spine. "Doctor, this is an original first edition. There's only 3 left in existence! How…?"

"Let's just say I'm good friends with the author." He chuckled lowly

"Doctor, all of this…why would you give me all of this? It must have cost a fortune! How long did it take you?"

"Well without time travel it would've taken about 12 hours. With time travel…also 12 hours but it makes it look a lot less," he reasoned. "And money wise? No price is too great to help someone in need, which brings me on to your first question. Why? Do I need a reason? I said I'd replace everything I broke and I did. And made a few improvements."

"A few improvements?!" Bubblegum said, stunned. "This place looks completely different! You've replaced everything in here, even the stuff you didn't break! Even the floor's a different colour."

"Sorry about that!" He apologized, throwing his hands up in a mock surrender. "Those chemicals from earlier stained it and it was a pain to find tiling experts at this time of day. Hope you don't mind. Pink was the only colour they had…"

"Doctor…it's perfect. You've even recreated the anti-spontaneous combustion formula along with my other experiments. Why…"

"I told you…because I said I would. And that's not all either!" His hands flew around like they had a mind of their own. "I've left each and every one of you something very special, as a thanks from me for saving Ooo."

"But Doc, you're the one who…"

"Remember, Finn, I was never here," he tapped his nose knowingly. "People will forever herald you five as the heroes of Ooo, and although there may be rumours of a 6th horseman they'll be dismissed. Forgotten. The way it should be."

"But Doctor how can we possibly…Doc, are you alright?" Marceline asked, noticing the Doctor stiffen suddenly. She followed his gaze to one of Bubblegum's laptops, now fully repaired.

"Doctor, what's the matter?" Flame princess asked, taking a step forward.

"Bonnie…" he said in a strained voice. "…You haven't ordered any deep space weather balloon patrols recently, have you?"

"Um, Doctor, what are you talking about?" He turned to face her, his true age suddenly becoming apparent, his eyes dimming and face sagging. His face also showed another emotion, one she thought she'd never see, at least not with him. It only flickered across his features for less than a second but she'd knew it'd been there. Fear.

"Please…just answer, yes or no."

"No."

"Then we've got a problem," he said, walking slowly over to the nearest monitor. "…Because right now the rift is still open. Anything from my universe can cross into yours, un-aided. This computer's been monitoring the airspace around the wormhole for the last 8 hours." Bubblegum hurried over to him and put on her glasses to look at the screen.

"But that looks like…"

"Company. Bad company." He tapped the screen, bringing up a staggered wave form. "There's only two things I know of that move in formation like that. Deep space weather balloons and…"

"What, Doc? Finn asked, clutching Flame princess's hand tighter. "Who's coming?"

"Daleks. On the other side of that wormhole there are lots and lots of…daleks." He turned heavily back around to them. "I'm sorry…but this is goodbye. You were brilliant. All of you but this is it."

"Doctor, you can't just leave!" Marceline pleaded. "You just saved the world!"

"No you did, but that's all about to change if I don't leave right now. Forget the cybermen, the daleks will raze this entire planet, your whole world to the ground before you can even blink. And not just that. They'll destroy everything in their path until nothing remains." His face turned dark for a moment, all of his supressed rage suddenly bubbling to the surface. "Bonnie knows this, she's seen my past and what the daleks stand for. And that's why…" he took Bubblegum's hands gently in his own, becoming much more composed than before. "…you know what I have to do, don't you?" She nodded silently.

"But…isn't there another way?"

"You know there isn't, I'm sorry."

"Peebles, what does he mean?" Jake asked, becoming uneasy. "What's he going to do?"

"Will I ever see you again?" Bubblegum continued, trying to hold back her tears.

"Ha…you don't need me anymore, you never did." He smiled warmly in an effort to hide his sadness. "Just a story to tell your children…grandchildren." He let go of her hands, letting them fall limply down to her sides. He then went around the room, shaking hands with everybody he could, even Flame princess who burned him slightly. "Just remember what you're fighting for. What you're living for…It's been an honour to know each and every one of you personally." He snapped his fingers, causing the doors to the TARDIS to swing open.

"Marceline, I never asked the name of your friend who left but I get the feeling I'll find out some day. One day. Anyway…thank you." And before any of them could ask what in Glob was going on, or even comprehend the situation, he was gone. Gone like he'd never even been there in the first place. The man who never was. A stunned silence followed.

"What just happened?" Finn asked Bubblegum, tentatively. "What's he doing?"

"Saving us." She turned from the screen to face them, red patches around her eyes indicating she'd been crying. "He's going to close the wormhole."

**A/N: Just when you thought the Doctor could catch a break. The ending was designed to be rushed and sudden (emphasising how serious the situation is) so don't feel shortchanged!**

**The Doctor saving the candy people was always my plan (Bubblegum would have no one to protect or rule over and would generally be a mess if he didn't). It works because the the cyber planner never explicitly saw any bodies and just assumed they died while in reality the Doctor had gone back and told them to wait in the sewer.)**

**Please leave something in the review section to tell me how this went for you (as the writer I've got limited scope for that).**

**Is this the last they see of the Doctor? What about the gifts he spoke of? Find out in the final parts (coming soon)!**


	24. The gifts: Part 1

"He's going to do what?" Flame princess asked, despite knowing full well what the Doctor intended to do.

"He's going to close the wormhole to stop the Daleks from destroying not just Ooo, but the rest of our universe as well," Bubblegum explained, a little teary eyed. "Do you remember what he said about the war that his people died in?" All but Flame princess nodded. "The daleks were the ones responsible. They took away everything he had. And now he's facing them again…to save us."

"What does that mean though?" Marceline queried, not able to supress the panic evident in her voice. "Will he be alright?" Bubblegum simply turned the monitor around so they could see.

"PB explain this? All I see is science stuff."

"The daleks are currently in the Doctor's universe," she pointed to the screen. "But they're travelling much faster than him. When he stops to seal the rift…they'll blast him out of the sky…"

"Whoa can't we help him?!" Jake said, frantically to which Bubblegum shook her head in frustration.

"Even if he does close the rift before they destroy him…he'll be back in his own universe. We'll never be able to see him again…and that's if he survives. I've been inside his mind, I know what the daleks are capable of…the odds of him surviving are…" she burst into tears again causing Marceline to rush forwards out of instinct and put her arm around her. If the group hadn't been so shocked at the Doctor's selfless self-sacrifice they would have been shocked at Marceline's sudden affection towards Bubblegum, though it seemed to be a far more common occurrence as of late.

_"What is it with those two? One minute they can't stand each other and the next they're perfect together. I wonder…" _

"We…we didn't even get to thank him…" Flame princess murmured clutching Finn's hand tighter. "Without him you and I wouldn't be able to touch and you wouldn't even be alive! None of Ooo would…and now he's gone." Jake took it upon himself to pull everyone together for a group hug in memory of their friend. They were so engrossed in the activity that they didn't see a small screen flicker to life on the workbench. It glowed a bright blue colour, like the sky on a clear day, and started to come out of the screen, forming a hologram.

"Hello, heroes!" The group jumped apart, surprised at the voice. It belonged to the Doctor, and so did the hologram which had taken his form. "If this pre-recorded holo-message has been activated then it can only mean one thing. Danger, and I mean fatal."

"Where did he find the time to…"

"And I know what you're all thinking." The image laughed. "How can I be talking to you now if I'm currently in orbit fixing the rift above your planet? I'm a time traveller, you'll figure it out."

"But Doctor…"

"Remember, Bonnie, I've pre-recorded this message so I can't actually hear you."

"Then how did you…?"

"I'm just very good at guessing." Marceline raised an eyebrow but remained silent. "I suppose you're all also wondering how I can die because of what I said back in the TARDIS." The recording paused for a moment, then continued. "Yes it's true my death is fixed in time on Trenzalore but you've got to understand: there's fact and then there's the daleks. There's no way I can stop them but I can seal off your reality from their grasp and that's exactly what I'm doing."

"Doctor…"

"Jake don't interrupt," the recording looked straight at him.

"Sorry."

"It's ok!" The image reassured. "Actually now that I think about it I could be guessing completely wrong about what you're saying to me so these outbursts of mine could be unjustified. Please excuse the awkwardness if I've been getting it wrong but if not I guess I really am just a good guesser." The recording paused again, looking thoughtful.

"I had to leave in a bit of a rush and so I realise you never got to say goodbye, or even thank you. Well I've said it before and I'll say it again now: there's really no need to thank me for anything. It was you, Ooo's finest, which saved the world, not me. I was just there as a guide but it was you brilliant, brilliant people who did the real work. If you really want to thank me then you can do one thing…just one." A smile played across his features. "Live amazing lives. Remember what's worth fighting for. Be the best you can be for your people, and yourselves."

The image flickered slightly with static, then held its arms out wide. "Now it's my turn. I mentioned I had gifts for all of you as a thanks for saving the world and myself; don't worry I didn't forget! Not even a dalek invasion force is going to stop me from giving you guys a thank you present. I've left each and every one of you something I hope you'll like in your homes." Finn raised his free hand to say something. "Don't ask how I know where all your homes are I just do." Finn put his hand down.

"And don't feel like you're all indebted to me because of this because you're not. I did some terrible things while I was here and this is my way of trying to…compensate in a way. I know it can in no way compare to what you did for me but it's all I've got." He shrugged, almost apologetically so. A wild beeping noise sounded behind him, indicating recording time was nearly up so he just got down to the heart of the matter. "Finn the human, the very best of humanity. Don't lose sight of what's important even when those you strive to protect take you for granted. Jake the dog, the most amazing and compassionate canine life form I've ever met. I know you think you aren't reliable at times but when the time is right just remember that people can trust you. Flame princess of the fire kingdom, I didn't spend a lot of time with you but I can already tell that the fire kingdom is in good hands. If ever in doubt, consult your heart. Marceline, the vampire queen. Remember what I told you in the world of the dead. Even when you feel alone just remember that people care about you. You will never truly be alone."

The recording then turned ever so slightly so its focus was solely on Bubblegum. "Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum of the candy kingdom. No matter what you think, you are not a bad person. We all make mistakes but we live through them. Remember the good always outweighs the bad, even in the darkest hour. You helped me in my hour of need and I will never, ever forget you. Thank you." The recording flickered again, this time more severely. The Doctor smiled for the last time and suddenly all the weight seemed to lift from his shoulders. "I guess this is the last time I'll get to say this…thank you. Thank you and goodbye." The image faded, leaving the group near dumbstruck but the Timelord hadn't even begun yet; his first gift had already appeared. When the image in front of it faded, the device that the recording had been playing from became clear.

"BMO!" Finn yelled.

"Hello everybody!" He smiled happily. "I am back!" The whole room formed another group hug, this time with BMO at the centre, overjoyed (if not surprised) that their friend had returned to life.

"B-but how?!" Bubblegum asked, every bit inquisitive as she was overjoyed.

"The Doctor said the question you should really ask yourself is how I obtained the TARDIS emergency protocols so easily." The little robot said.

"What's that got to do with…?"

"It's alive."

"Wait what?" The group collectively took a step back.

"You were right, princess," BMO continued. "There was no way I could have hacked into the TARDIS data banks to steal the protocols but when I connected it wasn't just myself that connected to it. It connected to me."

"The TARDIS is alive?" Finn said, incredulously. "That's mathematical!"

"Yes, Finn,…but how did that allow you to get the protocols? And how does that explain how you're here, BMO? You died back in that cave, sacrificing yourself to save us."

"The Doctor told me you would say that and told me to say that it is not a sacrifice if I did not die." BMO replied with his ever present smile. "But all I had to do to get the code from the TARDIS was to ask. And it gave them to me."

"Because you asked?" Jake said.

"No, Jake, because I asked **nicely**!"

"That still doesn't tell us how you're alive!" Bubblegum said, resisting the urge to throttle the little robot for answers.

"Oh yes, silly Beemo! When I connected to the TARDIS a complete bio metrical scan was automatically taken to make sure I could communicate effectively with the systems. So although my physical body was destroyed back in the cave, my consciousness was stored in the TARDIS which the Doctor used to build me a new body!"

"He just couldn't do it, that man…that brilliant, impossible man" Bubblegum murmured.

"Couldn't do what, PB?"

"He couldn't bring himself to let go. To give up on us," she explained. "Even after death he couldn't bring himself to accept any different than before. And it brought you back to life, BMO."

"And with new and improved software!" BMO added happily.

"Wait, like what?" Finn queried.

"New video games!" He yelled, in ecstasy, dancing around on the table top. "The Doctor downloaded the entire NES library onto my expanded hard drive."

"NO, FRICKEN, WAY!" Finn and Jake looked at each other hugged, jumping around on the spot. "That's totally rhombus!"

"What's a NES?" Flame princess asked, perplexed.

"I'm not sure but I've been looking for years in the trash dumps for the cartridges and only found about 3." Finn explained. "They were always the most fun to play but we never had that many…but now we've got the entire collection. I know the Doctor said gifts but that tops the chart!"

"No Finn," BMO said with as wry a smile he could muster.

"What?"

"The games are not your gifts. They are a bonus the Doctor included for you and Jake to play but your gifts are still waiting in the treehouse for you."

"Dude…what could be better than over 100 new video games?" Jake wondered aloud.

"I dunno man but I'm not staying around to find out! Flame princess we still on for 7?"

"Yes, Finn."

"Brilliant! I'll see you then," Finn grinned and scooped up the newly rebuilt BMO in his arms and then promptly dived out of the window. Jake followed and turned into a parachute to land them safely down into the street below, screaming something about multiplayer pacman. The three girls just stared at each other, lost for words. One minute they'd been moping around and generally heartbroken, the next completely the opposite and full of life.

_"That's just the effect he can have on people, I guess."_

"Boys and their video games." Bubblegum smiled watching the brothers become specks on the landscape.

"Wait so does that mean our gifts are waiting for us at our houses, too?" Marceline asked.

"It would seem so."

"Ceya, then!" Marceline somersaulted out of the window opposite to the one Finn had taken." Bye, FP! Bye, Bubblebutt!" Bubblegum outwardly glared at the rapidly shrinking image of the vampire but at the same time felt a pang of regret that she'd left so soon. Now it was just Bubblegum and Flame princess still in the lab. Though they'd had their differences in the past, over the past few days they'd connected more. The relationship was not so forced as before and was much more understanding, now that both sides had seen the other in different situations.

"Well, I guess I should be going, too," Flame princess said at length. "As much as I'd like to stay, someone has to help with the rebuilding of the fire kingdom and help the citizens settle back in."

"Oh no, by all means. Take care of yourself."

"Thanks…and you too."

"I will." Flame princess turned to leave but Bubblegum called her back.

"Flame princess…take care of Finn for me. Keep him safe."

"…I will, with every bit of my power."

"….You deserve him, you know?"

"No…I don't." She gave a look that Bubblegum couldn't quite distinguish. "Maybe in some ways he deserves you more than me." Bubblegum was taken aback by the remark but before she could reply Flame princess had gone, flown out of the window like Marceline. The candy princess pondered on what she'd meant by Finn deserving her but quickly pushed the thought out of her mind.

_"No…he deserves so much more than me. Besides I've already made my choice about who I want to be with." _She blushed, realising what she'd just thought and so pushed those thoughts out of her mind, as well, and instead focused on the Doctor's last action. Giving them gifts. Why? Although she asked herself why and told herself he was just being kind to them for what they'd done she knew that it wasn't strictly true.

_"He gave us these gifts to make us forget about him. By giving us something we really care about he's trying to distract us from what he did for us. Saving us…and sacrificing himself in the process. In a way he's trying to bribe us."_ She laughed silently. _"Trying to say 'you can have these as long as I'm forgotten.' Still playing us even to his last…"_ she couldn't bring herself to finish so just sat there in silence, taking in her exquisite new equipment that'd he'd given her. _"Is the lab my present? Somehow I don't feel like it is. He told me he promised he'd fix the lab and he did, albeit completely revamped it in the process. So what could he have possibly got…"_KNOCK, KNOCK!

"It's open," she said, not turning around.

"Forgive me, my lady." Bubblegum froze, blood turning to ice. She'd recognise that voice anywhere, but the last time she'd heard it he'd been dying on the floor of the cybermen's crash wreck. It simply wasn't possible and yet turning around very slowly indeed once again proved her wrong. Standing in the door way, slightly apologetically, stood,

"Peppermint butler?!"

"Sorry to disturb you, should I come back later?"

"Peppermint, you're back!" She flung her arms around him, much to his confusion. "You're cyber parts have gone, too! I just can't believe it!" Peppermint shook his head, not in denial but in acceptance.

"Princess the only reason I'm here is to turn myself in." He said gravely.

"Huh?!"

"I heard everything I said when that thing, the cyber planner, had control over me. I said and did some terrible things to you and for that I apologize. You may either fire me or execute me for high treason. The choice is up to you." He knelt in front of her, head bowed, expecting the blow. But the blow never came. The candy butler raised his head slightly to see Bubblegum crying. "Princess? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just I'm so happy that your alive, that's all." She said, wiping away a sugary tear. "Come on, Peps, did you honestly think I would fire you or any biz like that? We both know you had no control over your body, and for the brief period you did you gave me a vital piece of information that helped us to save the day! And then returned my sonic candycane to me! Don't you remember?" She gripped both the butler and the device in her pocket in remembrance.

"Honestly, princess, I don't remember a lot of what happened," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "I remember saying those horrible things and then getting hit by Miss Marceline's bass guitar but after that I can't remember anything. I don't even know how I got out of there. I just woke up outside the candy kingdom without those metal implants." Bubblegum clutched him snugly.

"Are you sure you don't remember anything. Anything at all?! It's very important," she implored, gripping him slightly more tightly than necessary.

"No not really. I'm sorry I can't be of more help." He emphasised nervously, as if at any second the princess would change her mind.

"No it's alright." She sighed, putting the butler's fears to rest. "You've been through an incalculable degree of stress. I understand."

"I just remember lying on the floor, dying. The walls started to collapse around me, some sort of whirring noise…and then there was nothing. Just a bright light and I woke up here." Bubblegum perked up ever so slightly.

"…Did you say whirring, like a sort of wheezing?"

"Yes, that's the only thing I can recall. Is it important?" He asked but she shook her head, though smiling inwardly.

"No…it isn't important. What is important is you're alive!" She hugged him again. "The best gift I could ever hope for."

"Um, well no, actually," he said, taking out a small, dark blue, package from the inside of his jacket. "I woke up with this in my pocket, addressed to you. It looks a lot more gift-like than I do."

"What the…? Peps where did you get this?" She gestured to the box, which he handed over for her to examine.

"I told you, princess, I haven't the faintest idea. I just woke up with it. It's addressed only to you so I haven't been tempted to peek. It's all yours."

"This…what could this be?" She looked over at the candy butler. "Peppermint could you do something for me?"

"Of course, princess!" He said eagerly. "Anything to pay for my most heinous crimes."

"No, no you don't need to pay for anything," she insisted, holding her hand up. "Anyway, in honour of the candy people's and your own return and to mark the defeat of our adversaries I need you to organise a celebration party for everyone. And to honour the lives of those who were lost," she said rather more quietly

"Everyone?" He clarified. "As in…"

"Everybody who can. All the neighbouring kingdoms included. Even the ice kingdom."

"Is that safe?" He asked, alarmed at the prospect of the Ice king.

"After everything I've seen I think I can cope."

"Very well, princess, I'll see what I can do," he replied, turning on his heel and making his way down the hall.

"Thank you, Peppermint!" She called after him, slowly closing the door after he'd gone. Although organising the party had been the main reason she'd sent him out, the real reason was to allow her to open the mystery package in private.

"_What could he have possibly gotten me that could be better than a new lab? The lives of everybody in the candy kingdom? Peppermint butler's safety? What is it?" _Full of anticipation, she slowly unwrapped the box, noting the colour of the wrapping paper. TARDIS blue. When she finally got round to opening the lid she was at a loss for words. 1) There was no way the gift could actually exist, and 2) The object didn't belong to her. For staring up at her from the confines of the box was none other than Marceline's most treasured possession, Hambo.

**A/N: Even in the penultimate chapter there's still cliff hangers, just to keep you guys on your toes! And you did read that right, this is the second to last chapter I'm going to write (excluding a possible epilogue). The epilogue will be influenced by my next question and the answers I get so please review with your answer: Does this deserve a sequel?**

**I've already been in talks with two other writers on the site and they seem open to the idea of some crossovers between stories. It'd be nice to get some support (you are the guys I'm writing for!) so this is the time when you can help! If you haven't reviewed before but really like the story then please review; now is your time to shine!**

**Last note: Did you really think I'd permanently get rid off either Pepps or BMO? (Anyone who's read my profile will know BMO is my favourite character on the show). Everyone deserves a happy ending...except for one. See you at the finish line!**

**(BTW NES are classic Nintendo games)**


	25. The gifts: Part 2

Bubblegum slowly lifted the tatty, faded, pink monkey out of the box, scarcely believing it to be real.

She knew the story behind it. It was given to Marceline in the first years of the great mushroom war aftermath by Simon Petrikov, before he became the ice king. After being her only friend for hundreds of years her ex-boyfriend, Ash, had then sold it to a witch, leading to her having to accompany Marceline to retrieve it. Then when Simon regained his memory briefly, Hambo had been used as a catalyst in a reaction that allowed Simon to communicate with his fiancé across time. Hambo had been lost in the process, never to be seen again…until now.

"How?! How did he get this? Hambo was destroyed!" Bubblegum racked her brains for an answer and in desperation took a closer look at the package the stuffed animal had come in. She rattled the box experimentally and was surprised to hear a slight scratching sound. Peering down into the box, she could see there was a note at the bottom, covered in writing.

_Bonnie,_

_ If Peppermint Butler has done as I expected then you'll have received this letter with something special enclosed. If you haven't got this letter…I really need to rethink my strategies when delivering stuff. _

_Anyway, I found this little fellow floating through space as if he'd fallen out of some sort of space time portal. I'm not sure what he was doing but in any case I recognise that this item doesn't belong to you. I measured the timeline associated with it and found it to belong to your friend, Marceline. _

_The reason I didn't return it to her directly as I think it would mean more coming from you. By you giving this gift to her instead of me I believe it'll help to repair your relationship with her. I've spent enough time alone with both of you to know how you truly feel about each other and this is my way of helping you to start over. You both deserve each other and I know that you both want it. Give this to her and make it happen._

_Thank you_

_The Doctor _

Bubblegum re-read the letter several times to make sure she wasn't dreaming. She wasn't. Marceline had been absolutely heartbroken when Hambo had been destroyed, even more so when she had realised what Bubblegum had given Maja to get him back.

She hadn't spoken for weeks and when she did it was only to make snide comments and the like, but Bubblegum knew deep down she was only doing it because she was hurt. Hurt that Bubblegum had given up her own most prized possession in exchange for Hambo, which had then been lost. She believed Marceline to feel guilty about the whole incident but now she didn't need to.

_"Maybe, just maybe she can forgive me. She never forgave me for sacrificing the rock shirt and when she lost Hambo to the time portal she was scared I'd be mad because my own favourite thing had been lost to get it. I've never had a way to say sorry…until now. Oh Doctor…even after you've gone you're still helping me. I might never be able to repay you but I can at least thank you, even if you don't want me to. Thank you, Doctor."_

One the other side of the grasslands a very similar letter was being read.

Marceline had flown home as fast was humanly (or vampirely) possible under the pretence of finding her gift. In reality she hadn't wanted to be left alone with Bubblegum in case Flame princess had left first. The awkwardness and silence wasn't something she'd wanted to experience so she'd beat a hasty retreat. This wasn't to say she wasn't excited about the possibility of a gift, as no one ever gave her gifts, much less was actually nice to her.

When she'd arrived back to her cave home she'd instantly located the present, it being the only object which wasn't either grey or her bass. And there it was…all wrapped up in TARDIS blue wrapping paper and tied off with a red bow. Sucking the colour out of the bow, she'd set about opening the box, ripping through the paper with her scythe-like nails.

Upon opening the box the vampire had nearly done what Bubblegum had done, and dropped it, though it wouldn't have mattered as the contents weren't exactly fragile. Hands trembling from shock, Marceline lifted out the rock shirt she'd given princess Bubblegum all those years ago. Smelling it deeply she noticed that one of the sleeves had been sown back on rather neatly, a note attached. Snatching it off she started to read.

_"Marcy,_

_Don't ask how I got this. Don't question or even think about, I mean it! It doesn't matter. What does matter is that I know this doesn't belong to you; I feel it's only right that you should be the one to return this. It'll mean a lot more to her coming from you than it will from me andit'll help to repair your relationship with her. I've spent enough time alone with both of you to know how you truly feel about each other and this is my way of helping you to start over. You both deserve each other and I know that you both want it. Give this to her and make it happen._

_Thank you_

_The Doctor_

Despite his warning, Marceline did wonder how he'd gotten the shirt. When Marceline had found out that Bubblegum had used it to get Hambo back from Maja, the sky witch, she hadn't talked to her for weeks. Obviously she'd been overjoyed to get her Hambo back but she felt incredibly guilty about how she'd got him. It wasn't that she was mad at Bubblegum that she'd not spoken, she just didn't feel worthy of her company after such a selfless act. But not anymore. Now she'd got the shirt back (however suspicious the circumstances she'd gotten it in) she could give it back and return the favour.

_"The Doctor hasn't just given me a gift…he's given me a second chance. A second chance with her. Thank you, Doctor. I don't care if you don't want it. Thank you."_

Later that night at Bubblegum's party…

"Whoa, Finn! That's a cool sword you've got there!" When Finn and Jake had returned to the treehouse there'd been several new additions to the environment. The first had been a real, proper pre-mushroom war T.V. to play BMO's new video games on. The second had been Jake's: A recipe book containing all the greatest dishes in the universe, including the omelette the Doctor had made back in the TARDIS. Finn's had been a new sword (having lost his old one in the battle against the cybermen).

"It's so…hypnotising."

"Thanks Breakfast princess!" He said, unsheathing it.

"Whoa! It's beautiful! What's it made of?" Breakfast princess gestured to the blade, which was emanating a glowing blue aura.

"The note said it's made of…hold on," Finn said, taking out a crumpled piece of paper. "It's made of a refined version of a crystal solid commonly found on Metabilis 3. It also says that the more in tune my mind is with my body, the more powerful the aura becomes and the blade becomes stronger.

"That's pretty lumpin' sweet, Finn!" LSP remarked, admiring the blue glow. "Any idea about who gave it to you?" Finn shared a look with Jake.

"Who knows? Who knows? Hey look, it's my girlfriend!" Finn saw Flame princess enter the hall from the opposite side in a beautiful, fiery ball gown, sending some of the less brave candy people diving for cover.

"WHAT?!" LSP choked. "You're dating that…that non-lumpy girl? We're so over!" She floated away into the crowd, pausing to steal some of the crisps from a nearby table. Finn tried to assure her that he didn't have any ill will towards her lumps but Jake stopped him.

"Don't let that purple rain cloud ruin the party for you. Go have fun with Flame princess." Finn didn't need to be told twice and melted into the crowd of people, intent on finding his future wife. Jake smiled to himself.

_"Thanks, Doc. I owe you one. Without you Finn would still be moping around like a wet fish and FP would be all alone and confused. You made them better for me, for everyone. Thanks for everything."_ The yellow canine sighed, then banished the melancholy thoughts from his head before joining in the dance party that had started up in the centre of the room. He was well known for his elastic dancing skills and didn't want to disappoint anyone.

Bubblegum hadn't been kidding when she asked Peppermint butler to invite everybody. She meant everybody and everybody had come. The dance floor was filled with representatives from every kingdom throughout Ooo. Slime, raggedy, lumpy-space were just to name a few. Even the ice king had turned up (much to a lot of the princess's annoyance) but even he was just having a good time on the dance floor like everyone else. The reason everyone was having such a good time on the dance floor was obvious.

"Thank you Ooo! We're the Scream queens and we're gonna rock this party!" A familiar vampire shouted before diving straight into her first song. Bubblegum wasn't much of a party person herself and preferred to stay in the lab, but for some reason felt compelled to leave her work and come down stairs to where the music was playing. She would've known the music anywhere (having actually been their manager for a few weeks) but didn't expect them to be playing.

She knew Marceline was a party animal but she never, ever came to the candy kingdom to play, so Bubblegum knew it was a special occasion when she did. Quietly creeping down the adjacent corridor to the main hall she could just make out the lyrics. She froze when she got close enough, mid step. She'd heard the lyrics before. Once, a very long time ago.

**_"Sorry I don't treat you're perfect, like all your little loyal subjects do._**

**_Sorry I'm not made of sugar…"_**

It was the song Marceline had sang when trying to open the door of the Door-lord. Slowly peering into the hall but keeping in the shadows so no one would see her, Bubblegum entered the hall, mesmerised by the silkiness of Marceline's voice. Not that keeping in the shadows would matter as everyone was fixated on the Scream queens, or more specifically Marceline.

**_"It's like I'm not, even a person, am I?_**

**_I'm just your problem…"_**

The lyrics were meant for her, she had no doubt about that. Listening closer, she could hear the song about to end…the end! Bubblegum gasped when she realised she'd never actually heard the end of the piece; Marceline had gotten too embarrassed and self-conscious over what she was singing before she could finish the first time. But not this time. Marceline didn't know she was here and watching her; Bubblegum was determined to know what the final words were.

**_"But I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I shouldn't have to be the one that makes up with you, so_**

**_Why do I want to? Why do I want to…be with you? Why do I want to be-e-e-e-e with you?_**

**_(bass chord) I guess I'll never find out…"_**

Marceline stopped playing, the song finished, and applause erupted around her.

"Marceline, you rock!"

"Yeah! Scream queens for life!"

"You're the best, Marceline!" The vampire looked up, surveying her cheering fans. A flash of pink caught her eye in the corner of the room.

_"…Was that…? No it couldn't have been…"_

Bubblegum ran back up the stairs, sure she'd been caught. Listening carefully she heard the music start up again, playing a different song this time. She wasn't being followed, that's good. Even if this was her castle she still felt as if she'd intruded in something that wasn't meant for her ears. Locking herself in her bedroom she thought aloud.

_"The last lines…I heard them but now I'm even more confused. What does she mean, wanting to be with me? We talked about it before but I ruined it by telling her she wasn't perfect enough for me. I blew it."_ A voice in the back of her mind echoed. "But now you have a second chance. The Doctor gave you a second chance by giving you Hambo. This is what he meant_…but is this what he meant?"_

"Goodbye!"

"See you later!" Princess Bubblegum waved goodbye to the last of her guests. At 2 o'clock in the morning it wasn't surprising that party was over. Before it had ended, however, Bubblegum had seen it fit to give awards to the heroes of Ooo given that most of Ooo was actually present. Finn and Jake had received knighthoods with BMO getting the same plus extra honours for his unparalleled contribution. She wasn't technically allowed to endow Marceline or Flame princess with anything (both being rulers of other kingdoms) but she'd none the less gone against tradition and presented them with medals for bravery amongst other things. What was even more surprising to the onlookers was that princess Bubblegum herself refused to accept any sort of recognition for her efforts, much to Finn's worry. Before he could voice his concern, however, the princess had given a small speech, thanking everybody for turning up and an extra special mention to the Scream queens for an exceptional performance.

This had only intensified the look Marceline had been giving her for the entirety of the speech and Bubblegum suspected that she knew, or at the very least suspected of her listening to 'I'm just your problem'. Bubblegum hadn't wanted to give a speech but she had to make at least one official appearance at the party so had decided on a closing speech. Contrary to her expectancy, Marceline had been the first to leave, not even saying goodbye. The rest had then slowly trickled out, thanking the pink princess in the process.

When she'd finally persuaded the ice king to leave (with a little help from Finn and his newly acquired sword) she'd gone straight up to her bedroom once again, bidding Peppermint butler good night on the way up. She quickly changed out of her regular dress, into her purple sweatpants and began to look for her rock shirt like she did every night, only to realise that she no longer had it. Resigning herself to not wear a t-shirt, she flopped down on the bed, letting her voluminous pink hair fall around her.

"Did you hear all of it?" Bubblegum sprang off the bed into a fighting stance at the voice.

"Come out now before I call the guards!" She yelled out into the darkness.

"If you keep shouting you'll wake Peppermint. I just want to talk." Marceline stepped out of the shadows but Bubblegum didn't drop her guard.

"Marcy, it's 2 in the morning! How did you get in? Nope that's silly, you came in the windows," she said dismissively. "Why're you here?"

"Did you hear all of it?" The vampire queen asked again, taking a step towards Bubblegum, making her feel very uncomfortable.

"Hear all of what?"

"My song."

"…I'm not sure what you mean."

"Oh come off it, Bonnie!" Marceline said, angrily. "We both know you were there for some of it. How much did you hear?"

"…Just the end," Bubblegum said, truthfully. "Ever since that incident with the door-lord I've wanted more than anything to know how it ended. Is…is it true, your song."

"Yeah."

"Yes but which part?" Bubblegum asked. "I know the first part was true because the door started to open but when you snapped out of it, it shut again, meaning you lied. Was the ending true, Marcy?" Marceline always liked it when she called her 'Marcy'. It made her feel involved, somehow.

"Yes, Bonnie. Every word I spoke was real."

"Then…you really feel that way?"

"Yes."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…I should go," Marceline said after getting no reaction out of Bubblegum. "See you around, princess. But before she could float away into the night, Marceline felt a sudden warmth grip her arm. She looked back to see Bubblegum gently, yet firmly, holding on to her.

"Marcy…don't go."

"…"

"You saved my life."

"…"

"Do you remember?! Back on the floor of the cyber crash?"

"Oh…yeah."

"I remember."

"…Everything?"

"Everything."

"Soooo…even when I?" Marceline blushed slightly.

"Kiss of life? Yes, Marcy, even that." Marceline blushed even harder. "Thank you and…I enjoyed it."

"Huh?"

"Don't be coy with me, Marcy," she said with a small smile. "We both know you enjoyed it too."

"Well…"

"I wouldn't mind doing it again sometime…if that's ok with you…" Bubblegum looked down at the floor, which had suddenly become very interesting. Several tense moments passed as Marceline was at a loss for words. "…I'm sorry, for everything. I'm the one who ruined it for us all those years ago."

"What?"

"I was arrogant, selfish, and uncaring." Bubblegum gradually pulled Marceline out of the air and down to the ground. "I've kicked myself for years about what I said. I know it doesn't mean much now but I'm sorry. I didn't mean it."

"…Bonnie, you don't need to be sorry. It was my fault. If I'd just been more open about what I wanted I would never have…" The vampire was cut off as Bubblegum smashed her lips against her own, drowning out the last of her words. After about 30 seconds of bliss she had to stop for air, much to Marceline's disappointment.

"Marceline, I forgive you. If you can forgive me then I'm willing to put the past behind us."

"Y-you really mean that?"

"Marcy, d'ya think the kiss we just shared was just for fun? Not to say that it wasn't fu…" this time it was Bubblegum who was cut off by Marceline reciprocating the gesture.

"Does that answer your question?"

"Only one of them," Bubblegum replied, smiling. "Why did you actually come here, tonight? It wasn't just about the song, was it?"

"No…" Marceline's peppy mood evaporated, suddenly becoming very withdrawn…almost sinisterly so. "We've been ignoring something." Bubblegum somehow knew exactly where this was going, and really didn't want to.

"Marcy…"

"The TARDIS," the vampire stated. "Not just a TARDIS but a police box! We've seen it before and don't give me that look!" She exclaimed, taking note of Bubblegum's rigid body. "Don't try to deny it."

"Denying's the only thing that's worked for centuries," she whispered back.

"We both know who had a police box for a TARDIS too. Maybe he can help finding the Doctor again."

"But he left. He left and took her with him and left me with…this." Bubblegum gestured morosely to the walls of the bedroom. "They're gone…gone forever. They left and took part of me with them."

"Then let me fill that part for you!" Marceline implored gently taking the candy princess's hands in her own. "I don't know how or why the Doctor and him have exactly the same TARDIS but something's you just don't find out. And I don't want to. All I want is you." Their eyes locked, deep red boring into sky blue. Now…enough of that. I've got something to give you." Bonnie visibly relaxed at this, all too eager to banish the memories of the past back down to recesses of her mind vault. "I think it'll help in the current situation." She looked down towards Bubblegum's mid-section, admiring the way it curved and moved. Bubblegum herself looked down and realised she still only had her bra covering her top. Blushing, Marceline pulled out a shirt from behind her back. But not just any shirt. Bubblegum's eyebrows skyrocketed.

"But that's…Marcy, how did you get this?" The two shared a look. "The Doctor." They both said simultaneously. "But you know how Maja works, Marcy," Bubblegum pressed. "He would've had to exchange something even more valuable to her in order to get it. What did he give?"

"No idea, but now it's yours again."

"Oh that reminds me!" Bubblegum bent down and rummaged under her bed, giving Marceline a view she never thought she'd see again. When she stood up again she held in her hand a second thing she thought she never see again.

"Hambo!" Bubblegum handed it over where Marceline hugged it so tightly she thought it might break. "You…you got him back for me?"

"No it was the Do…"

"It doesn't matter, Bon-bon. You brought him home to me. Thank you."

"…It was the least I could do after all you've done for me. Actually, there's one more thing you can do…"

"Anything, Bonnie."

"Stay with me, tonight"

"F-for real?"

"Sure," the pink princess gestured to the bed. "It's definitely big enough." Marceline rubbed her ears, thinking maybe she'd misheard.

"Are…are you sure you want to do this? I don't want to hurt you like I did last ti…" The vampire was cut off once more as Bubblegum planted another kiss on her lips.

"It's ok. We both did some things we're not proud of but that's in the past now. It's the future which counts, and I know we'll live through it. Together." Another few seconds past but the tension in the air was so great it felt more like hours. The vampire eventually spoke up.

"…Thank you, Bonnibel." Marceline said, quietly. "Thank you for giving me a second chance with you. I think I can do it. If you're there I can do it. With you." Bubblegum smiled at this before opening her door, looking both ways out into the hall before hanging a "Do not disturb sign' on the handle and shutting the door for a second, and final time.

And it was then that Bubblegum understood the nature of the gifts the Doctor had given. Though he'd given physical objects that could be touched and felt, the real gifts were much, much better; they couldn't be touched or felt but they were just as real as any of the material gifts he'd given. He'd given them the one thing he could never have himself. Love.

Although he'd allowed Finn and Flame princess to touch with his miraculous machine, they'd never have gotten back together in the first place without his gentle guidance. She and Marceline would still be alone and miserable without his help, crying over what was once was and not thinking about what could be. And so, as Princess Bubblegum looked towards the stars to where the rift had once been, with Marceline at her side once more she thought of only one thing.

_"Wherever you are, Doctor, the saviour of Ooo, know that although you've left this world you will never, ever leave our hearts. Wherever you are, Doctor, thank you. Thank you for everything. Goodbye."_

**_A/N: The end? Not quite. Though this marks the end of the main story I'll be writing a short epilogue that will both solve and raise some questions. Don't want to get boring now do I?! Thanks to all of you who've taken the time to read this and even more to those who've reviewed. You guy's support got me through this just as much as my own drive with this. If you haven't already (and even if you have) I encourage you to review (this is pretty much the end of the story). Who knows, I might learn something from you guy's thoughts._**

**_P.S. In the DW episode 'Stolen Earth/Journey's end', Rose mentions a machine that can read timelines and a modified version of this is what the Doctor uses to find out who Hambo belonged to. One last thing. How did he get the rock shirt? Find out in the thrilling conclusion to 'An adventure time in time and space: Molten steel'. See you guys there!_**


	26. Epilogue

"Crabit! Crabit!" Maja the sky witch wasn't happy. She wasn't angry either, just tired. It'd been a slow week and business was going badly; people just didn't seem to want exploding magical beans like they used to. "Damn it, Crabit, get in here!" She yelled irritably. "Close the front door and stop making that ridiculous sound!" The 'ridiculous' sound she was referring to was in fact a wheezing that had begun about 30 seconds ago and was really starting to get on her nerves, distracting her from her stirring of the enormous cauldron in the centre of the room. "Crabit!"

"Sorry but I thought it was best if we weren't interrupted."

"What the…?" A figure had slipped silently into the room. How he'd gotten in, let alone snuck up on her she'd never know; and he was now walking towards her.

"How did you get in here?" Her voice was like 3 or 4 different people talking at once but for some reason didn't seem to faze him. "Crabit!"

"Don't worry he's fine." He took out an odd, short, metallic stick and pretended to examine it in detail. "His eyes are very sensitive to sonic vibrations. Give him an hour and he'll recover."

"Hey I need him for stuff!" She yelled. The figure said nothing. "What do you want anyway? I'm closed for business!"

"Oh…well I guess you don't want mine." He turned to go.

"Wait!" She called. As disturbing as it was that he'd appeared without any warning and had somehow breached all of her magical barriers, she couldn't say no to business. "What kind of business? I'm warning you, though, this had better be worth my time." At this he gave a small, but brief, smile.

"I'll put this in terms you can understand."

"Hey don't patroni…" She began, angrily but he held up his hand.

"You have something that I want."

"Huh?"

"That." He pointed decisively across the darkness of the room to where a shirt was hanging.

"What? Did that bozo, Bubblegum, send you?! I got it fair and squa…"

"I'm aware of your agreement, Maja."

"How do you know my name?"

"Doesn't matter. What does matter is although I'm forced to honour your agreement with the princess, it doesn't mean I can't offer something of mine in exchange for it."

"Really?!" She laughed, almost feeling sorry for the man. Almost. "That's why you're here? Well you can't have it. The sentimental freshness on this shirt is unparalleled. What could you possibly give me that's worth my time?" In response, the man simply raised his hand to the piece of cloth that was fastened around his neck and pulled. It came away without resistance and subsequently fell into his outstretched hand.

"Scan it." He said simply.

"That little thing can't possibly…"

"You know I wouldn't have come here if I didn't have something. Scan it." Maja raised her green skinned hand to it, full of suspicion. How could a simple piece of cloth match the psychic freshness that the shirt was imbued with? It wasn't possible. Yet after scanning it the sky witch was forced to take a step back. Not only did the item equal the power of the shirt, it surpassed it tenfold.

"How…?"

"It's cool isn't it?" The man smiled. "You know what I want. You also know a good deal when you see one. That shirt there," he gestured to the object. ", is nothing compared to this. Take it while you still can." Warily she held out her hand but he withdrew his. "For the shirt." Maja stopped and considered the offer. Though she hated to admit it she'd actually grown attached to the rock shirt princess Bubblegum had once owned. Bubblegum had reclaimed it on several occasions as a result of her failed plans but Maja was always able to get it back somehow, one way or another.

She was still suspicious of how the stranger had gotten in to her house but it didn't matter. All that mattered was the object he held. Its sentimental value was so tremendous that she could feel it emanating from where she stood. Although she was reluctant to hand over the shirt, it was meaningless compared with…whatever he held. She still wasn't sure exactly what it was but it was still valuable. More valuable, she surmised, than anything else she could ever hope to come by.

"Fine," she eventually said, tossing the shirt across the room. "Now give me that thing!" He obliged. "Great, now take your shirt and get out of here before I change my mind!"

"I could say the same thing."

"What?!" But the stranger had already gone, leaving behind his most prized possession in exchange for something of considerably less value. But he'd learned in his many years of travel that certain things could never have a price tag. He knew that the friendship and love between people he cared about was much more worthwhile than any object he could ever come by.

…Is it done?" The voice was cold and full of darkness, not unlike the place it resided.

"Yes." A second, lilting, more detached voice answered.

"Good." A third replied. "Now nothing can stop us from destroying this meaningless world." The space around the three figures wasn't dark. It was empty. Devoid of anything and stretching on for an eternity. No up, no down…no light nor dark. Even the void was crowded when compared to the expanse of the realm. It wasn't called the silent realm for no reason.

"But what of the Doctor?" The second asked. If the face that the voice belonged to had eyes, then they would have glowed red at the very mention of the Timelords name. "I have been matched by the Doctor on more than one occasion and have learned to never underestimate him. He is strong."

"I am beyond strength." The third simply said. "His friends of the old world were tiresome but posed little threat. He is of no consequence."

"He single-handedly defeated the cybermen."

"That was just the starting course," the first replied. "Next time he will feast on a delectable 16 course meal of pain and destruction."

"He…"

"He did exactly what I wanted. I created the rift to bring the cybermen through to test the peoples of this worlds defences, and to test him. Without the Doctor they would be dust."

"They will be dust anyway. Even with the Doctor's help but now he's gone. Though we cannot be sure the daleks destroyed him, he cannot have long to live if he survived."

"Indeed." The third grinned crookedly. "He has done exactly as we planned and been taken care of for us by the mutant race. All according to plan. How did you persuade them to come?"

"Manipulating timelines has always been a gift of mine, such as mastery over the dimensions has been to you."

"Ah ha ha ha yes! I don't know why you fear him so much. He's gone."

"It is not within my capacity to feel fear. The Doctor is resourceful." The second paused, almost hesitantly so. "I know him better than you two do. If you haven't located him, then he is a threat."

"There are no threats that equal my power, much less all of ours combined," the third announced, thought to who it couldn't be said. "Once we have the artefact you speak of then we will destroy not only this universe but all the other conceivable ones as well."

"They are not possible ones," the first spoke, though more matter-of-factly than condescendingly. "They are merely alternate realities. They're not any less real than our current one, though after we have acquired the object I spoke of then they will all perish, regardless of how real they were to begin with. I will not be thwarted a second time."

"None of us will." The third agreed in its ever present bone scraping cadence. "Between us we have dominion over all. Time, dimension, and life. The people of this world, nor any other world will be able to stand in our way. There is nothing and no one to stop us. Not the people of the old world. Not the guardians of light. Not even the Doctor."

_**The Doctor will return to Ooo in "An adventure time in time and space: The chaos dimension."**_

**A/N: It's done. Over 3 months of posting. Over 100 hours of work. Over 90,000 words and 26 chapters. It's done, and I'm just happy that you were all along for the ride with me. I've had so much fun writing this story it's a bummer to have to end it. But like all good things it must but fear not! **

**Who are the 3 figures that talk of the end of all things? (I'll be properly impressed if you can guess all 3). What do they mean by the end of all things? Who are the people of the old world and the guardians of light? How will the Doctor survive the dalek attack? **

**Find out in the sequel to 'An adventure time in time and space: Molten steel': 'An adventure time in time and space: The chaos dimension.'**

**As said before, this sequel will contain crossovers from the author 'I am red bull' and Cartoonanimespazz15'. I encourage you to read their stories before this sequel as it won't make a lot (or any) sense to you if you don't. Seriously. I'm not kidding. This sequel will not be worth reading without reading those other writers works first. Go do it!**

**Due to college commitments (and the other writer's current stories) I probably won't get around to writing it for another few months but I'm going to do another (unrelated) story in between that focuses on an alternative reality for Finn's upbringing. It'll make a nice change of pace and writing style/ genre for me so I hope you'll enjoy that as well.**

**I don't know if I said this but this was actually my first fanfiction…ever! I've got a real sense of accomplishment for sticking with this for so long and I'm really, really interested to hear (or read) what you guys thought. Even just a few words on the review page will make me better as a writer (kinda mushy but true) and as a person.**

**(P.S. That first part of the epilogue explains how the Doctor got PB's shirt back. The object he gave? If you hadn't guessed it was his bow tie (the same one he wore against the Atraxi in 'the eleventh hour'.) It makes sense it would have incredible sentimental value. I'll also leave it ambiguous as to what he gave FP. Sometimes the it's best left to the reader to decide.**

**I'll stop bothering you for now so thank you once again for reading and stay tuned for more. Bye from PozzyP!**


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